Hosea's Wife

For years one of my favorite books of the Bible has been Hosea. Hosea is a prophet of the Lord and God tells him to take a prostitute to be his wife. God did this to give a picture of how his own people had been unfaithful to Him.

"Go, take to yourself an adulterous wife and children of unfaithfulness, because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery in departing from the Lord."

During my freshman year of college my roommate, Elizabeth, loaned me a book called Redeeming Love by F. Rivers. It was a fiction book, set in the western days I believe, of the story of Hosea and his prostitute wife.

For different reasons, this story was always incredible to me! Imagine a man choosing a prostitute as his wife. Choosing to love her. Choosing to stay faithful to her.

Then realizing that God Himself has done the very same thing with mankind. He has done everything to redeem mankind and still we prostitute ourselves to the things and ideas of this world, straying form Him time and time again. But He chooses to love us. He chooses to stay faithful to us.

I can think of many times where I have chosen to step away from Him because of my circumstances, past, issues and uncertainties. He chooses me although He knows I'll be unfaithful. He chooses to be faithful regardless of me.

I've probably posted this song before but it just absolutely speaks to me and I feel like it describes how great the Father's love for us that even in our unfaithfulness He is faithful and loving, wanting our best.

ACRES OF HOPE

by Shane Barnard and Robbie Seay

He will allure her
He will pursue her
And call her out
To wilderness with flowers in His hand
She is responding
Beat up and hurting
Deserving death
But offerings of life are found instead

She will sing
She will sing
Oh, to You
She will sing as in the days of youth
As You lead her away
To valleys low
To acres of hope
Acres of hope

Here in the valley
Walk close beside me
Don’t look back
For love is growing vineyards up ahead
You have called me master
And though you’re in the dark here
Call me friend
And call me lover and marry me for good

She will sing
She will sing
Oh, to You
She will sing as in the days of youth
As You lead her away
To valleys low
To acres of hope
Acres of hope

How the story ends is
Love and tenderness in Him
Not safe, but worth it
So the valley’s up ahead
Or the ones we live
We’ll sing together
We’ll sing together

We will sing
We will sing
Oh, to You
We will sing as in the days of youth
As You lead us away
To valleys low
To acres of hope
Acres of hope

“Lord, sustain me in the valley. Give me ears to hear Your sweet tender voice and lead me in to acres of hope in this dry and weary land.”

"Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt. ‘In that day,’ declares the LORD,’you will call me 'my husband'; you will no longer call me 'my master." (Hosea 2:14-16)

And as I've been made aware of lately...nothing grows on a mountaintop. But looking down at the valley, its full of lush, green growth. I'll not discount the valley anymore and I'll thank the Lord for drawing me to Himself in love!

abiding

So the other 16 interns and leaders left this morning to check out the tour de France. I however am stuck at the training center not feeling well. Today actually makes a week of feeling "bleh."

As my dear friends headed out they asked if they could do anything. I said, "Yeah, pray I learn what I need to learn so I can be done with this junk!"

One young woman's response- "Maybe you just need to rest and wait on God."

She was right. I have spent all morning in the bed and in the bathroom and during this very long morning I have been made aware of how much time I spend striving.

Striving just sounds like an exhausting word. We can strive in so many ways and I feel like lately I've been striving in every way! Emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and physcially I've been striving toward the next best adventure, idea, level, and (okay maybe physically I haven't been striving for much more than feeling well!

Nevertheless, its tiring to strive and I venture to say, spiritually, its not all that healthy...in the ways I've been striving.

For a few weeks I feel like God's been trying to teach me to abide in Christ. Everywhere I turn the lesson is there. I've been asking people, searching scripture, observing others and I just can't figure it out!!! Why is it so difficult for me???

And then this morning I was reading The True Vine by A. Murray and read this...

"How much weary labor is involved in striving to understand what abiding is! How much fruitless effort goes along with trying to attain it! Why is this? Because the attention is turned to the abiding as a work we have to do, instead of the living Christ, in whom we have to abide. He is Himself to hold and keep us. We think of abiding as a continual strain and effort--we forget that it meas rest from effort to one who has found the place of his abode."

HELLO!!!

I think this morning is evidence alone that all I need to do is rest in Christ and He will do the work. I've been this sick twice in the last week and both times have turned out to be a huge blessing.

In My Utmost for his Highest by Chambers I read, "...there is no circumstance of life in which we cannot abide in Jesus."

I believe that to be true. My heart's desire is to abide in every circumstance.

It may be cheesy but I like the picture that the following gives of losing myself as I abide in Christ...

abIde
ABIDE
ABiDE
ABDE
abde

Or

When it comes to Jesus it can only be one of two ways...

chrIst
CHRiST

He is greater and I am less OR I am greater and He is less. I vote for the former. :)

Akpe Yesu! Mawu lolo nutc! :)

Pretty sure I'm going back to bed...