“Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take words with you and return to the Lord; say to him, ‘Take away all guilt; accept that which is good, and we will offer the fruit of our lips.’” Hosea 14: 1-2
The prophet Hosea is encouraging the nation of Israel to return to the Lord and to ask for forgiveness for the things that they have done. The implied message is that God doesn’t want their sacrifice but for them to express their need of repentance in words and actions. In my life I have found that unless I could share my feelings with someone, and then show them how I felt, nothing else seemed to matter in trying to renew or build up a relationship with them.
During the first few years of my marriage to my late wife, Judy, one of the really hard things that I had to learn was that of sharing my feelings and thoughts, verses keeping them inside of me. Judy had a very out going personality and found it very easy to express what she was thinking and how she felt about most anything. I, on the other hand, was more reserved and had not learned how to share my emotions with others. This was an area where we struggled with quite a bit in those early years.
Thankfully she was patient with me, loved me, and was willing to walk with me through that period, as I slowly became comfortable in sharing with her and over time with others. It took a lot of prayers, love, and persistent effort but things did improve. Today, I am still somewhat reserved, however, I am better than I used to be, but it is something that I will have to constantly work with.
No matter what your personality is, according to Hosea, God wants to hear the words from our lips about how we see ourselves, about our shortcomings, and where we need to ask for forgiveness. Part of our spiritual pilgrimage is to daily ask for God’s repentance. Today return to God and strive to share all areas of your life, your prayer requests, and your shortcomings!
Prayer, Lord of grace, may your Holy Spirit give me the courage and confidence to share all of my feelings with you that are on my lips and in my heart and soul! Amen. Vernon T.
Copyright © 2014 Vernon T. Jones, All Rights Reserved
The prophet Hosea is encouraging the nation of Israel to return to the Lord and to ask for forgiveness for the things that they have done. The implied message is that God doesn’t want their sacrifice but for them to express their need of repentance in words and actions. In my life I have found that unless I could share my feelings with someone, and then show them how I felt, nothing else seemed to matter in trying to renew or build up a relationship with them.
During the first few years of my marriage to my late wife, Judy, one of the really hard things that I had to learn was that of sharing my feelings and thoughts, verses keeping them inside of me. Judy had a very out going personality and found it very easy to express what she was thinking and how she felt about most anything. I, on the other hand, was more reserved and had not learned how to share my emotions with others. This was an area where we struggled with quite a bit in those early years.
Thankfully she was patient with me, loved me, and was willing to walk with me through that period, as I slowly became comfortable in sharing with her and over time with others. It took a lot of prayers, love, and persistent effort but things did improve. Today, I am still somewhat reserved, however, I am better than I used to be, but it is something that I will have to constantly work with.
No matter what your personality is, according to Hosea, God wants to hear the words from our lips about how we see ourselves, about our shortcomings, and where we need to ask for forgiveness. Part of our spiritual pilgrimage is to daily ask for God’s repentance. Today return to God and strive to share all areas of your life, your prayer requests, and your shortcomings!
Prayer, Lord of grace, may your Holy Spirit give me the courage and confidence to share all of my feelings with you that are on my lips and in my heart and soul! Amen. Vernon T.
Copyright © 2014 Vernon T. Jones, All Rights Reserved
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