“So you, by the help of your God, return; observe mercy and justice, and wait on your God continually.”
Hosea 12:6 NKJV
Though the earth may be bursting forth with life, you may feel as distant and gray as the ocean’s horizon on a January day. In our society where it’s all about us, our happiness, and our well-being, we forget that a lasting relationship takes effort.
God has given us many analogies about our relationship with Him: Father and child, Shepherd and sheep, Master and servant. Children rebel, sheep wander, and servants run away. When we don’t feel close to God, it’s easy to think He has exited stage left, but this is a lie. We are the ones who move, leave, and stray from our relationship with Him. We skitter and play too close to the line of sin; and the more we hang out around that line, the more blurred it becomes. Rather than asking the Lord, “How far can I flee from this temptation?” we tend to ask, “How close can I get without technically sinning?”
We have a Savior who freed us from the chains and bondage of sin. Search your heart for areas that you have strayed, then repent and return to your God.
Father, forgive me for straying. Place a thirst in my soul to never stray again. I need You, though it is hard for my prideful self to admit; I need You. Amen.
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Today’s reading was adapted from Daily Wisdom for Women: 2017 Devotional Collection with permission from Barbour Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reading was written by Lydia Mindling.