Nothing Left: The Devouring Power of Sin | Joel 1-2

Sermon Guide for October 5, 2025

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How to Use This Guide:

These guides are designed to help you engage more deeply with my weekly sermon, regardless of your life stage. Use this guide to prepare your heart to receive God's Word before worship, or to reflect on God's Word the week following worship.

Parents, use the information in this guide to have meaningful conversations with your kids that nurture their faith and help them grow in God’s love.

Finally, I’d love for you to leave a comment! My hope is that these posts spark intergenerational conversations, helping us all learn from and encourage one another.

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Scriptures Referenced in the Sermon:

Joel 1:1-14, 2:12-17

Main Idea:

Joel 1–2 paints a terrifying picture of locusts as God’s judgment, showing how sin devours our lives—robbing joy, stripping away what sustains us, and even interrupting our worship. Yet the same passage points to hope: when God’s people repent with their hearts fully turned to Him, He restores what sin has consumed. The locusts remind us that sin has real, destructive consequences, but God’s grace through repentance—and ultimately through Jesus—offers renewal, restoration, and life that flourishes again.

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Children (ages 4–10)

• Key Insight: Sin can make life feel empty, like a garden eaten by locusts, but God wants to help us start over.

• Reflection Prompt: Can you think of a time you made a mistake that hurt you or someone else?

• Action Step: Memorize these words from Joel 2:13: “Return to the Lord your God, because he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and abounding in faithful love.”

Teens (ages 11–17)

• Key Insight: Sin may seem small, but it can take away joy, friendship, and trust—just like the locusts took everything from Israel.

• Reflection Prompt: What “small” sins or bad choices might be slowly taking things away from your life?

• Action Step: Write down one area where you need to repent or make things right and take one practical step this week toward restoration.

Younger Adults (ages 18–39)

• Key Insight: God warns us that sin has consequences not just now, but eternally. He calls us to repentance and offers restoration.

• Reflection Prompt: How do you see the consequences of ignored sin showing up in your work, relationships, or priorities?

• Action Step: Identify one area of life where you’ve been ignoring God’s correction. Schedule a time this week to confess it to God and take a step toward change.

Midlife Adults (ages 40–60)

• Key Insight: Life can feel like it’s been stripped bare by the consequences of sin or bad decisions, but God’s mercy offers restoration if we return to Him.

• Reflection Prompt: What are the “barren fields” in your life—relationships, finances, habits, or spiritual practices—that need God’s restoration?

• Action Step: Choose one “barren field” and make a concrete plan to repent, repair, or restore it this month, asking God for guidance and strength.

Seniors (ages 60+)

• Key Insight: God’s discipline reminds us of the seriousness of sin, but His grace is always available, even late in life.

• Reflection Prompt: Looking back, where have you seen God’s correction or judgment in your life, and how did His grace restore you?

• Action Step: Share one story of God’s restoration in your life with someone younger this week to encourage them in their walk with Him.