City Devotional

184. Worst Places – 03 JUL

Read: II Kings 5-8

Four men with skin diseases were at the entrance to the gate. They said to each other, "Why just sit here until we die? If we say, 'Let's go into the city,' we will die there because the famine is in the city, but if we sit here, we will also die. So now, come on. Let's go to the Arameans' camp. If they let us live, we will live; if they kill us, we will die." So the diseased men got up at twilight to go to the Arameans' camp. When they came to the camp's edge, they discovered that there was not a [single] man there, for the Lord had caused the Aramean camp to hear the sound of chariots, horses, and a great army. The Arameans had said to each other, "The king of Israel must have hired the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Egypt to attack us." So they had gotten up and fled at twilight abandoning their tents, horses, and donkeys. The camp was intact, and they had fled for their lives. When these men came to the edge of the camp, they went into a tent to eat and drink. Then they picked up the silver, gold, and clothing and went off and hid them. They came back and entered another tent, picked [things] up, and hid them. Then they said to each other, "We're not doing what is right. Today is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until morning light, we will be punished. Let's go tell the king's household." The diseased men went and called to the city's gatekeepers and told them, "We went to the Aramean camp and no one was there-no human sounds. There was nothing but tethered horses and donkeys, and the tents were intact." II Kings 7:3-10 (HCSB)

These four men, covered with some sort of skin disease, have nothing to lose. Their options are pretty limited: they can die where they are, they can go into the city and die of famine or they can go into the worst place - the Aramean camp and take a chance at being killed. So they chose the chance killing option – probably hoping for instant death or food scraps from some of the transient warriors’ meals. Instead of instant death or even scraps of food, they find silver, gold and clothing!

What a blessing, what a hidden treasure. Selfishly they horde as much as they can until their conscience catches up with them, “We're not doing what is right. Today is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until morning light, we will be punished. Let's go tell the king's household.” Their message eventually causes a stampede and prophetic fulfillment. Would you believe this news if this was your city? The Aramean camp was supposed to bring death, not life and abundance.

Where is the worst place in your city? Why is it the worst place in your city? Beyond the symptoms, what do you think is the real problem with this part of your city? Imagine if someone told you there is hidden treasure beyond your comprehension in the very worst place of your city. And furthermore, imagine that person is a diseased outcast. God has been known to put hidden treasures in our “worst places.”

Action: Don’t wait until you have an enemy and/or a disease to search for your city’s hidden treasures – be willing to risk looking in the worst places.

256. City Stormer – 13 SEP

Read: Joel 1-3

They storm the city; they run on the wall; they climb into the houses; they enter through the windows like thieves. The earth quakes before them; the sky shakes. The sun and moon grow dark, and the stars cease their shining. The Lord raises His voice in the presence of His army. His camp is very large; Those who carry out His command are powerful. Indeed, the Day of the Lord is terrible and dreadful- who can endure it? Even now- [this is] the Lord's declaration- turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Tear your hearts, not just your clothes, and return to the Lord your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in faithful love, and He relents from sending disaster. Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave a blessing behind Him, [so you can] offer grain and wine to the Lord your God. Joel 2:9-14 (HCSB)

Prophet Joel records God’s use of locusts. How dreadful that attack must have been! Your entire city is overwhelmed – relentlessly. When will this attack end? What will be left? Where can I hide?

Maybe locusts have never attacked your city, but certainly you can think of a moral issue that is comparable. Maybe your city has been relentlessly overwhelmed by laziness, greed, power, sexual immorality, corruption, injustice, pride or something else unique to your city. Who has the force to stop both the locust army and your city’s immoral army? The Lord does. The Lord can stop millions of locusts and He can stop hundreds of immoral actors. So why doesn’t He act now? Why doesn’t God protect His people and the righteous people in your city? Why do good people have to suffer?

I don’t know. But it is possible that the righteous people have become culpable. Somewhere in both of these cases the heart of the city turned away from the Lord. City control is like self-control – without it you will suffer the consequences and fall under someone else’s control. In this case the city fell to the control of the Lord with His locust generals and soldiers. In the case of your city, you may be under the control of lobbyists, mafia, gangs, organized crime, developers, business owners or others that have their interests over the interests of the residents.

What can you do about these powerful forces and how can you prevent this from happening again. Again, I don’t know for sure, but the pattern I’m seeing is that you need to go to the One that has the power to change the overwhelming forces. Instead of being stormed, be as one humble locust and storm the Lord. Go humbly to the Lord with torn hearts. Instead of being stormed, storm the Lord and your city.

Action: The Lord’s declaration - turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Tear your hearts, not just your clothes, and return to the Lord your God.