The Staggering Truth

“’The days are coming,’ declares the Sovereign Lord, ‘when I will send a famine through the land – not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the LORD. Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the LORD, but they will not find it.” Amos 8:11-12

I cannot think of a worse punishment than being removed from the wisdom and guidance of God. I remember when Kristen was beginning her spiral into a life of drugs she was still able to hear our words warning her, guiding her and trying to lead her into the ways of discipline and fruitful living. The further she removed herself from our presence the less time we were able to influence and instruct her. She became deaf to our words and the world became noisy to her desires.

Our Father will never remove His love but will remove His presence. He threatened this as a reality to Moses in the desert when He became exasperated with the children of Israel. God had spoken to them, warned them and shown miraculous signs to them in an effort to keep them anchored in belief and truth as they faced their wanderings. “I will send an angel before you…Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you on the way.” Exodus 33:2-3. This verse reminds me of when I used to tell my children that they had better leave me alone before I do something I regret! God was basically saying the same. He was saying, ‘I love you, you are my children but you had better get out of my sight right now. Your behavior will not change my will but will change my behavior towards you.’

God will remove Himself from our presence and become silent as we ‘stagger from sea to sea’. To me, the sea represents an engulfing body of circumstances that can pull us under in a moment since we lack an anchor to stabilize and secure us in our storms. He will still reign from above with His unchanging will but we will be void of the peace and comfort He provides through His word. We must stay connected to Him in order to recognize His voice and understand His leadings.