Joel 2:26-27. When Israel returns to the Lord she shall have plenty. She shall eat and be satisfied, she shall praise the name of the Lord who has dealt wondrously with her. God's people will then never again be put to shame - they shall know that he is in their midst, that he is the true God and there is no other.

In this short passage, the fact that God's people will never again be put to shame is said twice - it is sandwiched around "You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel and that I, the Lord, am your God and there is no other." Many who are trying to follow God's will as their heart instructs them are feeling shamed right now, or at least the world is trying to shame them. They are ashamed for standing up for traditional marriage, for the two genders, for the right to life, for medical freedom, for freedom of thought, speech, and worship. It is very difficult, especially when many the Church are not standing with us, and some are even engaging in the shaming behavior themselves. We are being "othered" and it is not pleasant, it is in fact very dangerous.

Yet we know what God is calling us to do - to speak the truth with charity. We know that he loves even those who are shaming us and he wants them to return to his ways. So we keep going, trudging through the mire of wrongness that is our current cultural moment, knowing that the truth will eventually prevail, it always does.

This reminder that God is with us, in our midst, is so helpful and hopeful. He is with us, he is with all of us, even though those who don't recognize him because they are behaving badly. He loves us all and wants us us back. Once we do all turn back to him, after all the suffering and the weeping, after we repent and fast and pray, we will then all have plenty and we will all feel this joy. Then none of us will ever be shamed again, we will be walking in his ways, and we all will know that our God is with us, and there is no other.