Day 11: The Time Has Come to Wail

Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 2

“Consider and call for the mourning women, that they may come; and send for the wailing women, that they may come! Let them make haste and take up a wailing for us, that our eyes may shed tears and our eyelids flow with water. For a voice of wailing is heard from Zion, ‘How are we ruined! We are put to great shame.’” — Jeremiah 9:17-19, NASB

“When I read articles about the spread sheets college women keep about their sexual activities, or when I watch how the Christian men I know struggle to avoid the parade of barely dressed women before them at a mall or restaurant, or when I have to turn over all ten women’s magazines at the grocery checkout because my nieces can now read their soft-porn headlines—I find I am more than shocked; I am deeply grieved. This is what feminism has done to improve the standing of women? It’s a very poor trade-off, indeed.” —Carolyn McCulley

Perhaps the most disturbing cultural transformation that developed from the feminist movement of the 1960s and 70s was the sexual revolution. The role reversal of genders was not limited to issues in the workplace, shared responsibilities in the home, or political and social equality; the feminist agenda found its way into the bedroom. Even some feminists are now shocked by the extent of their revolution. One of their authors notes, “The downside is we’ve raised a generation of young women—and men—who don’t understand sexual ethics like: Don’t sleep with a married man; don’t sleep with a married woman. … They don’t see sex as sacred or even very important anymore. That’s been lost.”

The book of Jeremiah was written as a message of rebuke and judgment to the people of God. They had adopted the depraved practices of the pagan culture around them and were involved in flagrant idol worship. The people of Judah had long ago lost their identity as God’s covenant people as their morality began to be shaped by the godless philosophies and sensual views of Assyria and Babylon. In chapter 9, God calls for the people to wail over the nation’s spiritual and moral condition.

Do you ever consider what God might say to America today? How does He view our moral condition, our casual attitude toward premarital and extramarital sex, our greed and lust for “more,” our abortions, our worship of fashion, and our insatiable appetite for sensual pleasure? What might He say to His church? Are we a spotless bride, or are we in bed with our immoral culture?

Jeremiah called for the women in his day to mourn and grieve over the things that were grievous to God. Where are the “wailing women” in our day? May we be women who truly and deeply care about what concerns the heart of God.

Take Time to Reflect

Have you grown accustomed or indifferent to the state of our culture? Pray for the church to be broken over the spiritual need all around us. Read Jeremiah 2 and consider what God might want to express to His people today.

Is your heart crying out for God to work in your life and in the lives of those you love? There is much in our culture to cause distress, but God will not turn away from our cries for help. You’ll soon be seated at the True Woman Wyoming conference—what do you want God to do in your life?

True Woman Wyoming Prayer Focus

Pray for Teresa Dick as she prepares to share lessons on “Submission and Satisfaction”. Pray that her message will be filled with grace and encouragement for women who have bought into the lie that their freedom comes from their own agenda.