A 71-year-old woman was outside her home when a swarm of killer (Africanized) bees began stinging her. Neighbors called firefighters who rushed to the rescue—only to find the woman covered in a “suit of bees.” A blanket was thrown over her and she was carried into a neighbor’s house. Surprisingly, she survived more than 1,000 stings!
A remnant of Judah had returned to Jerusalem from captivity in Babylon, only to be stung by the words and actions of the local pagan residents (Nehemiah 4:1-3). Once full of excitement and ready to rebuild the temple and the rest of the city, these Hebrews were now depressed and in a state of apathy. That’s when the prophet Haggai provided a fourfold message for them:
• Do the work—Haggai told them to give up their creature comforts and restore the temple and city for God’s glory (Haggai 1:1-15).
• Cling to God’s promises—The people could rest in the fact that God had not forgotten or abandoned them (Haggai 2:1-9).
• Pursue purity—God desired that they continue to follow His law and to be holy as He is holy (Haggai 2:10-19; Leviticus 11:44-45).
• Know that God rules—God reaffirmed that the line of kings leading to the Messiah and the kingdom He would usher in was intact and could not be broken (Haggai 2:20-23).
The stings of life can cause us to get bogged down in spiritual apathy. Perhaps you’re working for a difficult boss or have a family challenge that simply won’t go away. Whatever the issues are, remember this: God calls us to passionately serve Him as we rest in His promises. Pursue God and His rules, even as you find hope in the fact that He rules! May life’s stings inspire you to seek God—not slip into spiritual apathy.
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: Genesis 11:1-9
More:
Read Matthew 24:12-14 and consider what it reveals about the importance of living out true faith in Jesus even as sin and challenges abound.
Next:
What has caused you to experience spiritual apathy? What can help you to regain your passion for following and serving Him?
Gary Shultz on January 8, 2015 at 6:35 am
Ah, good advice. Sometimes we need a good zinger to get us going. As in scripture, often what God has in mind to turn us toward Him, we use to turn away. However as you have suggested we must remind ourselves God rules………
May I also incorporate a logistical question? It seems like the page format has changed. For old buzzards like me it makes it more difficult to read and navigate. Oh, I’ll still be thankfully following ODJ, I’m just giving a little feed back.
Tom Felten on January 8, 2015 at 10:08 pm
Gary, when I view the stings of life through the lens of Scripture and acknowledge God’s sovereignty, it makes all the difference! Some of the toughest times in my life have also turned out to be some of the best—helping me grow in faith and drawing me closer to Christ. Regarding the website, we were having some technical issues earlier in the day, but the pages should be rendering well now!
Gene on January 8, 2015 at 7:32 am
We shouldn’t be surprised when we face opposition during our own and/or church spiritual growth. It is a challenge to not let discouragement and apathy set in. These are certainly relevant challenges for today, Tom. We are actually studying Esther, Ezra, and Nehemiah in our church and this reminds me to tie-in Haggai as well.
Tom Felten on January 8, 2015 at 10:10 pm
Great books for the topic, Gene. May God give you and your church family great encouragement as you study them!