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Investing in Future Generations

AdventForeign Relations, Commonwealth Partnerships and International Aid Week 2 · Day 6

Scripture References

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Old Testament

Joel 2:28-32

²⁸ “It will happen afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; and your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams. Your young men will see visions.
²⁹ And also on the servants and on the handmaids in those days, I will pour out my Spirit.
³⁰ I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood, fire, and pillars of smoke.

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³¹ The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes.
³² It will happen that whoever will call on the LORD’s name shall be saved; for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and amongst the remnant, those whom the LORD calls.

New Testament

Acts 2:14-21

¹⁴ But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice and spoke out to them, “You men of Judea and all you who dwell at Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to my words.
¹⁵ For these aren’t drunken, as you suppose, seeing it is only the third hour of the day.
¹⁶ But this is what has been spoken through the prophet Joel:

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¹⁷ ‘It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams.
¹⁸ Yes, and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days, I will pour out my Spirit, and they will prophesy.
¹⁹ I will show wonders in the sky above, and signs on the earth beneath: blood, and fire, and billows of smoke.
²⁰ The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.
²¹ It will be that whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

Thought for the Day

Joel speaks of God pouring out his Spirit on all flesh: sons and daughters prophesying, old and young receiving vision. The promise is strikingly wide. The future of God’s people is not confined to a few great men. The Lord honours the whole body.

In Acts, Peter stands and says that this is what Joel spoke of. The Spirit is given, and the old boundaries begin to loosen. A new community is being formed, not by bloodline or empire, but by the gift of God. “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

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When we speak of “future generations” we can become abstract, as though children are merely tomorrow’s workforce. Scripture will not let us. The young are not a resource. They are persons on whom God delights to place his Spirit.

So pray for investment that is more than economics: for education, health, and safety, yes, but also for truthful formation and hope. Pray for churches that make room for the voices of the young without flattery. And pray for yourself: that you would live as someone who expects God to speak and act in those younger than you, and to give them gifts for the healing of the world.

Prayer Points

Respond

Lord, pour out your Spirit on the young; give them courage, wisdom, and joy that is not easily stolen.
Protect children in conflict and poverty; provide safety, schooling, health, and faithful carers.
Give governments and communities long sight and clean hands in decisions that shape the future.

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Renew your Church to honour the gifts of the young, and to disciple them with patience and truth.
Teach me to hope for the future as a gift of your Spirit, not merely a project of human control.

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