Pray the words of this Lazaroo aloud,  in deep-dive commitment:

“Despair, you farmers, wail, you vine growers; grieve for the wheat and the barley, because the harvest of the field is destroyed.”
(Joel 1:11)

Thank You for this heart-rending message, Jesus –

even though passages like this
depress people who merely dip in and out of Your Word.

They recoil in distaste and quickly search elsewhere in their Bibles
for some promise of hope and prosperity that will lift their spirits.

I understand.

There are plenty of days when I need to hear an encouraging word from You
to counter the discouraging words others heap on me.

But those who choose not to skim Your Word
who in desperation plunge headfirst into Your sacred Scriptures

immersing themselves daily in Your truth
until it saturates every pore of their bodies
every neuron of their brains

understand that Your punishment is not for harm

but to awaken me

before it’s too late.

_________
Psalms 119:67; 1 Corinthians 11:32; Hebrews 2:10; Hebrews 5:7-9; Hebrews 12:2-12; James 5:10-11; 1 Peter 4:1-2; 1 Peter 4:12-19; Revelation 1:9

What is Lazaroo?

Take Me Deeper

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.