Shaking the Nations

The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. And in this place I will bring peace. I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!

Haggai 2:9 (NLT)

Most often, when we see no way out—because we are trapped in a situation over which we have lost all control—we become so discouraged that we lose hope, to the point of wanting to give it all up and simply wait for the inevitable to occur. We often fall prey to the illusion that we are the only ones walking through the valley of the shadow of death and enduring the worst suffering imaginable. We treat our own stumbling block as if it were the only misery existing on this earth. We attempt to find every possible explanation to make sense of our misfortune.

Trials, miseries, and desolations are not the burden of a single individual or a family facing difficulties; they can just as easily be the lot of an entire neighborhood, a city, or even a whole nation. It is precisely this reality that should lead us to understand that no one is exempt. It is in these moments that God must be the Only One to whom we turn to find rest, peace, and hope. He can take what men have rejected and make it the very center of their attention. The people of Israel experienced precisely this situation when their city was devastated and the House of God was reduced to ruins. All hope seemed lost.

In what area have you lost hope? In what way have your life or your family been devastated? What has led you to say that you can no longer walk with your head held high? In this passage, God tells Haggai that He would shake the nations and fill with glory the House that would be rebuilt for His honor. If He acted in this way for a nation, a city, or a kingdom, why would He not do the same for you? What you have lost will be restored to you a hundredfold; Your years of suffering will be replaced by years of abundance, during which the glory of God will be revealed through your life. God has peace in store for you; be strong and persevering, for God is the One who swears by His own name to grant you peace and hope.

May the grace and peace of God be with you.