When we are faced with crises, a difficulty, or suffering, what is our response?

What should it be?

Too often my first response isn’t to run to the Lord. Instead it’s fear, frustration, or fretting. All too easily we all get upset and react out of emotion, letting feelings drive our thoughts and actions. Stress responses, like anger, short-term focus, and adrenaline rising, we just want to run away or be rescued from it.

In short, our primary crisis mode is very human. But for the children of Almighty God, we have a loving heavenly Father who is a strong tower, and the righteous run to it. The sheep of His pasture have a Good Shepherd who tends His flock, leading us to green pastures and still waters.

Our first response may not be to return to the Father’s house, but our second should be.

In the Old Testament book of Nehemiah, he returns to Jerusalem to lead the people of God tp repair the city’s broken walls. In chapter 8 we read:

So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month...v 6, And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground...v 13, And on the second day were gathered together the chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to understand the words of the law...v 18, Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner.

Then in chapter 9, v 1-3, Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them. And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. And they stood up in their place, and read in the book of the law of the LORD their God one fourth part of the day; and another fourth part they confessed, and worshiped the LORD their God. (ESV)

What is a Godly response?

Reading His Word, praising, praying, and repenting.

See Numbers 16, when Moses and Aaron fell facedown and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, when one man sins, will You be angry with the whole congregation?” because of the rebellion of the sons of Korah.

Read 2 Samuel 24 when God sent a plague upon Israel from that morning until the appointed time, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba died. And David saw the angel striking down the people, he spoke to the Lord.

In Job 1 we find that in one single day, Job lost his children and his possessions. What did he do? Job stood up, tore his robe, and shaved his head. He fell to the ground and worshiped!

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we should in like manner in our day, gather together the children of God and cry out to Him.

These recent years we have seen crises after crises, including riots, wars, famines, hurricanes, fires, floods, and sickness. The world’s response is altogether different than Christians should have. But far to many of us have acted more like the world than as those who follow the One who even the winds and the seas obey!

We ought to throw open the doors of our sanctuaries and call the assembly of the saints! Gathering in twos and threes, tens or dozens to cry out to the Lord, reading His Word, praising, praying, and repenting for our sins and the sins committed by the nations against the Lord and His anointed (Psalm 2).

If we would assemble and cry out for mercy and grace, then perhaps the Lord Almighty, the Maker of the heavens and the earth, the One who oversees all the affairs in his creation and who knows even the sparrow who falls to the ground — the only One capable of stopping a plague, would intervene on our behalf!

The world’s authorities play god, but we call on the Living God.

It took 10 plagues for Pharaoh to relent, let’s up hope we don’t need that many. Call the pastors, the elders, the ministers and laypeople, the old and young, the weak and the strong, the faithful followers of Christ — and like the young man in Luke 15:18, return to the Fathers’ house to call upon the Lord, that perhaps He would intervene and avert evil.

Even if a large gathering doesn’t happen, gather just 2 other faithful and meet in a home. Let there be thousands and thousands of such meetings each week and day all across the land.

Let us show the world that the Lord, He is God! Amen.

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