What you need for God’s restoration

Everyone declutters once in a while to create space in the garage or to make room for new things, only to clutter another space by holding on to old things. We all do it. God doesn't demand a new way of life from us. He wants to restore us to the original version, the only way to let go completely, working our way backward to His master blueprint preconception, now made available through faith in Jesus Christ. Things can get worse, possibly lose everything, and be in doubt of our identity until we decide to embrace Jesus Christ. I was there, the other end of the spectrum where things are dark, very dark with self.

Your dark place can be your mental health, emotional well-being, insecurity, constant panic, lack, or things that are not related to you but your loved ones. God gets our attention when things are unpleasant to our flesh, a clarion call to draw closer to Him, even when He did not initiate them. God told prophet Joel about His dynamics and condition of operation, "therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil." Joel 2:12-13. God commands us to fast. Jesus told us to do more fasting after His ascension to Heaven. In our Church, we are fasting and praying for three days (October 1-3, 2022) with the hope of restoration at 6 PM.

In anticipation of God's restoration, we must reset our lives to His default mode, coming to the end of self by aligning our hearts to His word and turning our ways to His. Only in this obedience will God restore the lost years, irrespective of the destructive means, hurricane, locust, or cankerworms. It won't matter to God because everything is brand new. That is God's promise of restoration, "and I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed." Joel 2:25-26! God can restore you.