Haggai 2:2-9. God tells Haggai to go and speak to the remnant of the people, including the king and governor and high priest, and tell them that though none of them may remember or have seen "this house in its former glory," they are to take courage, for God is with them always in accordance with the promise he made to them when he brought them out of Egypt. "My spirit abides among you; fear not ... Once again, in a little while, I will shake the heavens in the earth and the sea and the dry land so that the treasures of nation of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with splendor." After all, the silver and the gold are his, and he will bring them in, giving "this place" prosperity.

I know I've had this reading before, but, as always, I got something new out of it today. First, God reminds us of his promise to the Israelites. He told them he would always be their God and he is. He is always with them, even in the bad times. This is more reinforcement to me that I am to trust him and his promise for both me and those I love. He is always with us, as well.

Next, I have been praying a lot for the Church lately. I know that he is in the process of cleansing and rebuilding his Church, and that is his work, but his work is always supported by our prayers - so I am praying for the Church, the Pope, the bishops, the priests, and the deacons.

As I sense the looming change that I have written about before, and all the evil that is being allowed to flourish beforehand, I realize that in order to get us all back to the Church - in order to really rebuild - we need to experience the struggle first. We will not run to the Church for refuge if we have nothing to seek refuge from. So he is shaking the heavens and the earth, and will continue to come in order to bring us bring his most precious treasure, his people, back to his Church. The city of the New Jerusalem will be filled with his glorious treasure - it will be a splendor greater than anything we've seen before.