Joel 1:1-4

 Friday our nation observed the tragedies of “9/11" and those we lost

Many of us remember the very moment when we first heart of it
- for several hours we could hardly breathe
• we watched endless reruns of two airliners, smashing into the iconic “Twin Towers” in New York City
◦ we didn’t want to see it, but we couldn’t look away
◦ we could not avoid the reality of it
• and each time we looked, we felt helpless, outrage, and extreme sadness
- every disaster of that magnitude, wounds a country’s soul
• we don’t just walk away and return to our usual routine
◦ it creates a fog of confusion that we feel we must sort out
◦ it stirs up insecurities that leave us groping for answers
• for sometime after, we remain alert, sensitive, aware
◦ for awhile, we’re ready to listen; we’re paying attention and eager to learn

This is the right time for us to approach the prophecies of Joel

Israel was experiencing a catastrophic trauma
- it was not localized, but spread across the entire nation
• at times in this first chapter, Joel sounds like a newscaster;
◦ reporting the wide range of destruction
◦ the food source of the entire country was running out
• Joel, however, was not merely delivering a report;
◦ he was delivering “The word of the LORD”