The Book of Joel:

By Linda Sweeney

It's so interesting how we view warnings, isn't it? There are those we totally pay attention to like when we see or hear emergency vehicles because we can't miss the warning lights and sirens, and we perk up when a weather bulletin comes across our TV screen, computer or phone. Of course, these warnings are hard to ignore...they are so out of the ordinary and infrequent. There are other warnings we most often ignore such as the instructions given by the flight attendants as our plane prepares for takeoff!

Maybe it's because we think "we know" it all by heart...after all, we've heard this message many times before; we've never had to heed these warnings, and they are very familiar. Since it hasn't happened YET, we aren't concerned. We feel quite sure it won't this time either.

In the days when God spoke through His chosen and called prophets, the people treated His warnings much the same as we treat the safety instructions for our flight that's about to take off. We think that because there have been many warnings and promises of things to come that haven't happened, we can assume that this must either not be true or important.

This is exactly the scenario in the book of Joel. God used him to convey His message in a very real and visual way. He foretold of a very horrific locust invasion, which would be devastating to the people, the animals and the land but nothing like what would come in the final days. It happened exactly as Joel foretold it.  In spite of this graphic display of God's sovereign power, the people didn't "get it!" The locusts did come and they did devour everything green...even the continue the Bible study.

Hospitality

by Pat Harley

The kids came by for dinner after church this Sunday. I had tried a chicken pie recipe out of Pioneer Woman Cookbook and added a strawberry, red onion salad with parmesan cheese and almonds as a side. They came hungry and the food was plentiful. As happens most every time my family or friends are gathered around my table, I felt like laughing out of pure pleasure and delight. There is something heart- expanding about having a table, food, and love all in one place at the same time.

But one thing made this dinner even more special. Several months ago my sister, who had inherited my mother's china about 30 years ago, called and asked if I wanted it. She had never used it and so was ready to get rid of it. So I volunteered as fast as possible to take it off her hands without seeming greedy (although I was!).