Joel 2:12 – “‘Even now,’ declares the Lord, ‘return to Me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.’”
Today we are going to check in on our direction. As Christians, we all drift from time to time. Not only into sin, but also into autopilot in our walk with God.
DRIFT = A slow and gradual movement away from a position or intention.
Here are some things about drifting:
• Drifting is subtle movement. It’s not outright rebellion.
• You don’t choose to drift. You often don’t feel it happening - until you realise you’re no longer where you started.
• When you are drifting, it’s tricky to realise it because you are still moving. It can feel like movement in a good direction, when it may be a drift away.
• The reason we drift is because we’ve stopped checking our direction.
Drift doesn’t happen in one big moment; it happens slowly. One compromise, one delay, one busy week where prayer slips down the list. Then one day you realise you’re still moving but just not quite in the same direction you started. The warmth has cooled.
That’s the danger of drift – it often looks like progress. The schedule is full, the work is good, and the output from our lives is impressive. Yet beneath it all, something vital is missing: first love.
Revelation 2:2-4 says “I know your deeds, your hard work and perseverance… You have persevered and endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.”
Often people talk about this verse and the line “forsaken your first love” to mean “backsliding” or “straying from God” - but there is actually a little more to it than that.
Revelation 2 is a letter to the church in Ephesus. This wasn’t a flaky or immature church - it was mature, organised, and having an impact. Before Jesus challenges them, he gives them a long list of praise, so these weren’t lazy or bad people.
This is what makes the next verse so piercing: “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.”
The phrase “first love” (Greek: tēn agapēn sou tēn prōtēn) doesn’t mean they stopped loving God altogether. It means this: they abandoned the priority and passion of their original love - both for God and for people.
It means that at one time in the past they had greater love than they do now.
They were still doing the right things - but from a colder place.
The drift had happened!
Jesus continues in verse 5: “Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first.”
Do the things you did at first. When the drift happens, you go back to the beginning.
Fasting helps us do that. It is God’s built-in rhythm to catch us in that slow slide and invite us home again. He says, “Evennow…” Not after you’ve fixed yourself or proven your devotion. Even now - right in the middle of distraction, exhaustion, chaos, or distance - return to Me.
To return is simply to realign. And the beauty of returning is how short the distance really is. One humble moment of honesty closes the gap.
Isaiah 30:15 - “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.”
Psalm 116:7 - “Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord has been good to you.”
Let this fast be your turning point. Ask yourself, “Where have I drifted?”
Wherever it is, take the quiet moments of fasting today to locate your soul.
PRAY BOLD:
“Jesus, I’m coming back. I don’t want to live on autopilot or distant from Your presence. Where I’ve drifted, draw me close again. Rekindle my first love and realign my heart to what matters most. Let this fast mark my return to You.”
EQUIPPERS EVERYWHERE:
Today we are praying for India!
(As part of this fast, we’re lifting up our Equippers family and churches around the world. Each day, take a few moments to pray for the country we list and our church/es there - praying for the pastors and people, and believing for God’s presence, power, and provision to move in that nation.)