today's meditation (Hos.5) Turning to God

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Hosea 5:1-15)

1   Hear this, you priests!
     Pay attention, house of Israel!
     Listen, you of the house of the king!
     For the judgment applies to you,
     Because you have been a trap at Mizpah,
     And a net spread out on Tabor.
2   And the rebels have gone deep in depravity,
     But I will discipline all of them.
3   I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hidden from Me;
     Because now, Ephraim, you have been unfaithful,
     Israel has defiled itself.
4   Their deeds will not allow them 
     To return to their God.
     For a spirit of infidelity is within them,
     And they do not know the Lord.
5   Moreover, the pride of Israel testifies against him,
     And Israel and Ephraim stumble in their wrongdoing;
     Judah also has stumbled with them.
6   They will go with their flocks and herds 
     To seek the Lord, but they will not find Him;
     He has withdrawn from them.
7   They have dealt treacherously with the Lord,
     For they have given birth to illegitimate children.
     Now the new moon will devour them with their land.

8   Blow the horn in Gibeah,
     And the trumpet in Ramah.
     Sound an alarm at Beth-aven:
     “Behind you, Benjamin!”
9   Ephraim will become a desolation in the day of rebuke;
     Among the tribes of Israel I make known what is trustworthy.
10 The leaders of Judah have become like those who displace a boundary marker;
     On them I will pour out My anger like water.
11 Ephraim is oppressed, broken by judgment,
     Because he was determined to follow man’s command.
12 Therefore I am like a moth to Ephraim,
     And like rottenness to the house of Judah.
13 When Ephraim saw his sickness,
     And Judah his sore,
     Ephraim then went to Assyria 
     And sent word to King Jareb.
     But he is unable to heal you,
     Or to cure you of your sore.
14 For I will be like a lion to Ephraim 
     And like a young lion to the house of Judah.
     I, yes I, will tear to pieces and go away,
     I will carry away, and there will be no one to rescue.
15 I will go away and return to My place 
     Until they acknowledge their guilt and seek My face;
     In their distress they will search for Me.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

When someone gets so invested in their sins, it is very difficult for them to walk away from that in order to turn to God and walk with Him.  Even when those lives are deep in misery, despair and darkness - they will still love their sins more than anything else.  Although many people will finally reach their turning point when faced with enough misery.  

Not that anyone has to first hit rock bottom and then become "good enough" in order to approach God.  No one is good enough.  But there is hope and it is never too late!

God wants us to go to Him as we are.  In turning to Him for forgiveness of sins, and desiring to make Him Lord of our lives, He is the one who changes us from the inside out.  And then in our spiritual journey with Him, as we mature, He continues to work in us and through us - because He is faithful!

today's meditation (Hos.2) Recognizing Our Need

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Hosea 2:1-23) Say to your brothers, “Ammi,” and to your sisters, “Ruhamah.”

2   “Dispute with your mother, dispute,
     Because she is not my wife, and I am not her husband;
     But she must remove her infidelity from her face 
     And her adultery from between her breasts,
3   Otherwise, I will strip her naked 
     And expose her as on the day she was born.
     I will also make her like a wilderness,
     Make her like desert land,
     And put her to death with thirst.
4   Also, I will take no pity on her children,
     Because they are children of infidelity.
5   For their mother has committed prostitution;
     She who conceived them has acted shamefully.
     For she said, ‘I will go after my lovers,
     Who give me my bread and my water,
     My wool and my flax, my oil and my drink.’
6   Therefore, behold, I will obstruct her way with thorns,
     And I will build a stone wall against her so that she cannot find her paths.
7   And she will pursue her lovers, but she will not reach them;
     And she will seek them, but will not find them.
     Then she will say, ‘I will go back to my first husband,
     Because it was better for me then than now!’

8   “Yet she does not know that it was I myself who gave her the grain, the new wine, and the oil,
      And lavished on her silver and gold,
     Which they used for Baal.
9   Therefore, I will take back My grain at harvest time 
     And My new wine in its season.
     I will also take away My wool and My flax 
     That I gave to cover her nakedness.
10 So now I will uncover her lewdness 
     Before the eyes of her lovers,
     And no one will rescue her from My hand.
11 I will also put an end to all her joy,
     Her feasts, her new moons, her Sabbaths,
     And all her festivals.
12 And I will destroy her vines and fig trees,
     Of which she said, ‘They are my wages for prostitution 
     Which my lovers have given me.’
     And I will turn them into a forest,
     And the animals of the field will devour them.
13 I will punish her for the days of the Baals
     When she used to offer sacrifices to them 
     And adorn herself with her nose ring and jewelry,
     And follow her lovers, so that she forgot Me,” declares the Lord.

14 “Therefore, behold, I am going to persuade her,
     Bring her into the wilderness,
     And speak kindly to her.
15 Then I will give her her vineyards from there,
     And the Valley of Achor as a door of hope.
     And she will respond there as in the days of her youth,
     As in the day when she went up from the land of Egypt.
16 And it will come about on that day,” declares the Lord,
     “That you will call Me my husband 
     And no longer call Me my Baal.
17 For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth,
     So that they will no longer be mentioned by their names.
18 On that day I will also make a covenant for them 
     With the animals of the field,
     The birds of the sky,
     And the crawling things of the ground.
     And I will eliminate the bow, the sword, and war from the land,
     And will let them lie down in safety.
19 I will betroth you to Me forever;
     Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice,
     In favor and in compassion,
20 And I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness.
     Then you will know the Lord.

21 “And it will come about on that day that I will respond,” declares the Lord.
     “I will respond to the heavens, and they will respond to the earth,
22 And the earth will respond to the grain, to the new wine, and to the oil,
     And they will respond to Jezreel.
23 I will sow her for Myself in the land.
     I will also have compassion on her who had not obtained compassion,
     And I will say to those who were not My people,
     ‘You are My people!’
     And they will say, ‘You are my God!’”

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

God desires to have a personal relationship with everyone, and in order to have that, one must realize their need for Jesus to save them and help them through life. How can we recognize that need if everything always goes our way?  So in verse 6, it says that God will obstruct "her" way with thorns.  And in verse 9, uncovering one's nakedness is to expose one's sin and the false path that they are on.  

When anyone goes to Jesus for His salvation, they are clothed in His righteousness.  And when we choose to walk in God's way, we will be blessed.  God is faithful and protects and keeps us for all eternity.

today's meditation (Ez.16) Striving to be Obedient

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Ezekiel 16:1-63)  Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, make known to Jerusalem her abominations, 3 and say, ‘This is what the Lord God says to Jerusalem: “Your origin and your birth are from the land of the Canaanite; your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. 4 As for your birth, on the day you were born your navel cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water for cleansing; you were not rubbed with salt or even wrapped in cloths. 5 No eye looked with pity on you to do any of these things for you, to have compassion on you. Rather you were thrown out into the open field, for you were abhorred on the day you were born.

6 “When I passed by you and saw you squirming in your blood, I said to you while you were in your blood, ‘Live!’ Yes, I said to you while you were in your blood, ‘Live!’ 7 I made you very numerous, like plants of the field. Then you grew up, became tall and reached the age for fine jewelry; your breasts were formed and your hair had grown. Yet you were naked and bare.

8 “Then I passed by you and saw you, and behold, you were at the time for love; so I spread My garment over you and covered your nakedness. I also swore an oath to you and entered into a covenant with you so that you became Mine,” declares the Lord God. 9 “Then I bathed you with water, washed off your blood from you, and anointed you with oil. 10 I also clothed you with colorfully woven cloth and put sandals of fine leather on your feet; and I wrapped you with fine linen and covered you with silk. 11 I adorned you with jewelry, put bracelets on your wrists, and a necklace around your neck. 12 I also put a ring in your nose, earrings in your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head. 13 So you were adorned with gold and silver, and your dress was of fine linen, silk, and colorfully woven cloth. You ate fine flour, honey, and oil; so you were exceedingly beautiful and advanced to royalty.  14 Then your fame spread among the nations on account of your beauty, for it was perfect because of My splendor which I bestowed on you,” declares the Lord God.

15 “But you trusted in your beauty and became unfaithful because of your fame, and you poured out your obscene practices on every passer-by to whom it might be tempting. 16 You took some of your clothes, made for yourself high places of various colors, and committed prostitution on them, which should not come about nor happen. 17 You also took your beautiful jewels made of My gold and of My silver, which I had given you, and made for yourself male images so that you might commit prostitution with them. 18 Then you took your colorfully woven cloth and covered them, and offered My oil and My incense before them. 19 Also My bread which I gave you, fine flour, oil, and honey with which I fed you, you would offer before them for a soothing aroma; so it happened,” declares the Lord God. 20 “Furthermore, you took your sons and daughters whom you had borne to Me and sacrificed them to idols to be devoured. Were your obscene practices a trivial matter? 21 You slaughtered My children and offered them to idols by making them pass through the fire. 22 And besides all your abominations and obscene practices, you did not remember the days of your youth, when you were naked and bare and squirming in your blood.

23 “Then it came about after all your wickedness (‘Woe, woe to you!’ declares the Lord God), 24 that you built yourself a shrine and made yourself a high place in every public square. 25 You built yourself a high place at the beginning of every street and made your beauty abominable, and you spread your legs to every passer-by and multiplied your obscene practice. 26 You also committed prostitution with the Egyptians, your lustful neighbors, and multiplied your obscene practice to provoke Me to anger. 27 So behold, I have stretched out My hand against you and cut back your rations. And I turned you over to the desire of those who hate you, the daughters of the Philistines, who are ashamed of your outrageous conduct. 28 Moreover, you committed prostitution with the Assyrians because you were not satisfied; you committed prostitution with them and still were not satisfied. 29 You also multiplied your obscene practice with the land of merchants, Chaldea; yet even with this you were not satisfied.”’”

30 “How feverish is your heart,” declares the Lord God, “while you do all these things, the action of a bold prostitute! 31 When you built your shrine at the beginning of every street and made your high place in every public square, in spurning a prostitute’s fee, you were not like a prostitute. 32 You adulteress wife, who takes strangers instead of her husband! 33 Men give gifts to all prostitutes, but you give your gifts to all your lovers and lavish favors on them so that they will come to you from every direction for your obscene practices. 34 So it is the opposite for you from those women in your obscene practices, in that you are not approached for prostitution, and in the fact that you pay a prostitute’s fee, and no fee is paid to you; so you are the opposite.”

35 Therefore, you prostitute, hear the word of the Lord. 36 This is what the Lord God says: “Because your lewdness was poured out and your nakedness uncovered through your obscene practices with your lovers and with all your detestable idols, and because of the blood of your sons that you gave to idols, 37 therefore, behold, I am going to gather all your lovers whom you pleased, all those whom you loved as well as all those whom you hated. So I will gather them against you from every direction and expose your nakedness to them so that they may see all your nakedness. 38 So I will judge you as women who commit adultery or shed blood are judged; and I will bring on you the blood of wrath and jealousy. 39 I will also hand you over to your lovers, and they will tear down your shrines, demolish your high places, strip you of your clothing, take away your jewels, and will leave you naked and bare. 40 They will incite a crowd against you, and they will stone you and cut you to pieces with their swords. 41 And they will burn your houses with fire and execute judgments against you in the sight of many women. Then I will put an end to your prostitution, and you will also no longer pay your lovers. 42 So I will satisfy My fury against you and My jealousy will leave you, and I will be pacified and no longer be angry. 43 Since you have not remembered the days of your youth but have caused Me unrest by all these things, behold, I in turn will bring your conduct down on your own head,” declares the Lord God, “so that you will not commit this outrageous sin in addition to all your other abominations.

44 “Behold, everyone who quotes proverbs will quote this proverb about you, saying, ‘Like mother, like daughter.’ 45 You are the daughter of your mother, who loathed her husband and children. You are also the sister of your sisters, who loathed their husbands and children. Your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite. 46 Now your older sister is Samaria, who lives north of you with her daughters; and your younger sister, who lives south of you, is Sodom with her daughters. 47 Yet you have not merely walked in their ways and committed their abominations; but, as if that were too little, you also acted more corruptly in all your conduct than they. 48 As I live,” declares the Lord God, “Sodom, your sister and her daughters have not done as you and your daughters have done! 49 Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, plenty of food, and carefree ease, but she did not help the poor and needy. 50 So they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them when I saw it. 51 Furthermore, Samaria did not commit half of your sins, for you have multiplied your abominations more than they. So you have made your sisters appear innocent by all your abominations which you have committed. 52 Also, bear your disgrace in that you have made judgment favorable for your sisters. Because of your sins in which you acted more abominably than they, they are more in the right than you. Yes, be also ashamed and bear your disgrace, in that you made your sisters appear innocent.

53 “Nevertheless, I will restore their fortunes, the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters, the fortunes of Samaria and her daughters, and along with them your own fortunes, 54 so that you will bear your disgrace and feel ashamed for all that you have done when you become a consolation to them. 55 Your sisters, Sodom with her daughters and Samaria with her daughters, will return to their former state, and you with your daughters will also return to your former state. 56 As the name of your sister Sodom was not heard from your lips in your day of pride, 57 before your wickedness was uncovered, so now you have become the disgrace of the daughters of Edom and of all who are around her, of the daughters of the Philistines—those surrounding you who despise you. 58 You have suffered the penalty of your outrageous sin and abominations,” the Lord declares. 59 For this is what the Lord God says: “I will also do with you as you have done, you who have despised the oath by breaking the covenant.

60 “Nevertheless, I will remember My covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you. 61 Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you receive your sisters, both your older and your younger; and I will give them to you as daughters, but not because of your covenant. 62 So I will establish My covenant with you, and you shall know that I am the Lord, 63 so that you may remember and be ashamed, and not open your mouth again because of your disgrace, when I have forgiven you for all that you have done,” the Lord God declares.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Our promises to God mean nothing, because even when we want to be obedient, we will sin.  All we can promise is that we will strive to live in God's will - while relying on His help, strength and guidance.  Only when we become believers, God sees us clothed in the righteousness of Jesus.  And only because of God's faithfulness and grace do we have eternal security.  

today's meditation (Ez.12) Trusting with Confidence

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Ezekiel 12:1-28)  Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, you live in the midst of the rebellious house, who have eyes to see but do not see, ears to hear but do not hear; for they are a rebellious house. 3 So as for you, son of man, prepare for yourself baggage for exile and go into exile by day in their sight; that is, go into exile from your place to another place in their sight. Perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious house. 4 Bring your baggage out by day in their sight, as baggage for exile. Then you shall go out at evening in their sight, as those who are going into exile. 5 Dig a hole through the wall in their sight and go out through it. 6 Load the baggage on your shoulder in their sight and carry it out in the dark. You shall cover your face so that you cannot see the land, for I have set you as a sign to the house of Israel.”

7 Then I did so, just as I had been commanded. By day I brought out my baggage like the baggage of an exile. Then in the evening I dug through the wall with my hands; I went out in the dark and carried the baggage on my shoulder in their sight.

8 And in the morning the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 9 “Son of man, has the house of Israel, the rebellious house, not said to you, ‘What are you doing?’ 10 Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: “This pronouncement concerns the prince in Jerusalem as well as all the house of Israel who are in it.”’ 11 Say, ‘I am a sign to you. Just as I have done, so it will be done to them; they will go into exile, into captivity.’ 12 The prince who is among them will load his baggage on his shoulder in the dark and go out. They will dig a hole through the wall to bring it out through it. He will cover his face so that he cannot see the land with his eyes. 13 I will also spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My net. And I will bring him to Babylon in the land of the Chaldeans; yet he will not see it, though he will die there. 14 And I will scatter to every wind all who are around him, his helpers and all his troops; and I will draw out a sword after them. 15 So they will know that I am the Lord, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them among the countries. 16 But I will spare a few of them from the sword, the famine, and plague so that they may tell of all their abominations among the nations where they go, and may know that I am the Lord.”

17 Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 18 “Son of man, eat your bread with trembling, and drink your water with quivering and anxiety. 19 Then say to the people of the land, ‘This is what the Lord God says concerning the inhabitants of Jerusalem in the land of Israel: “They will eat their bread with anxiety and drink their water with horror, because their land will be stripped of its fullness on account of the violence of all who live in it. 20 The inhabited cities will be in ruins, and the land will be a desolation. So you will know that I am the Lord.”’”

21 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 22 “Son of man, what is this proverb you people have about the land of Israel, saying, ‘The days are long, and every vision fails’? 23 Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: “I will put an end to this proverb so that they will no longer use it as a proverb in Israel.” But tell them, “The days are approaching as well as the fulfillment of every vision. 24 For there will no longer be any false vision or deceptive divination within the house of Israel. 25 For I the Lord will speak whatever word I speak, and it will be performed. It will no longer be delayed, for in your days, you rebellious house, I will speak the word and perform it,” declares the Lord God.’”

26 Furthermore, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 27 “Son of man, behold, the house of Israel is saying, ‘The vision that he sees is for many years from now, and he prophesies of times far off.’ 28 Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: “None of My words will be delayed any longer. Whatever word I speak will be performed,”’” declares the Lord God.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

If anyone makes a proclamation or prophecy, we need to make sure if aligns with God's word.  This requires us knowing the Bible!  And by studying and knowing God and His word better, we can see that He has already fulfilled most of His prophecies, so we can know without a doubt that He will fulfill the rest of His prophecies.  He alone is perfectly faithful, therefore we can trust in Him with confidence.

today's meditation (Lam.3) Being Reconciled

(Dear Lord Jesus, guide me and give me insight as I read and study Your word, and let it be the meditation of my heart...)

(Lamentations 3:1-66)
1 I am the man who has seen misery 
     Because of the rod of His wrath.
2 He has driven me and made me walk 
     In darkness and not in light.
3 Indeed, He has turned His hand against me 
     Repeatedly all the day.
4 He has consumed my flesh and my skin,
     He has broken my bones.
5 He has besieged and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship.
6 He has made me live in dark places,
     Like those who have long been dead.
7 He has walled me in so that I cannot go out;
     He has made my chain heavy.
8 Even when I cry out and call for help,
     He shuts out my prayer.
9 He has blocked my ways with cut stone;
     He has twisted my paths.
10 He is to me like a bear lying in wait,
     Like a lion in secret places.
11 He has made my ways deviate, and torn me to pieces;
     He has made me desolate.
12 He bent His bow 
     And took aim at me as a target for the arrow.
13 He made the arrows of His quiver 
     Enter my inward parts.
14 I have become a laughingstock to all my people,
     Their song of ridicule all the day.
15 He has filled me with bitterness,
     He has made me drink plenty of wormwood.
16 He has also made my teeth grind with gravel;
     He has made me cower in the dust.
17 My soul has been excluded from peace;
     I have forgotten happiness.
18 So I say, “My strength has failed,
     And so has my hope from the Lord.”

19 Remember my misery and my homelessness, the wormwood and bitterness.
20 My soul certainly remembers,
     And is bent over within me.
21 I recall this to my mind,
     Therefore I wait.
22 The Lord’s acts of mercy indeed do not end,
     For His compassions do not fail.
23 They are new every morning;
     Great is Your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
     “Therefore I wait for Him.”
25 The Lord is good to those who await Him,
     To the person who seeks Him.
26 It is good that he waits silently 
     For the salvation of the Lord.
27 It is good for a man to bear 
     The yoke in his youth.
28 Let him sit alone and keep quiet,
     Since He has laid it on him.
29 Let him put his mouth in the dust;
     Perhaps there is hope.
30 Let him give his cheek to the one who is going to strike him;
     Let him be filled with shame.
31 For the Lord will not reject forever,
32 For if He causes grief,
     Then He will have compassion 
     In proportion to His abundant mercy.
33 For He does not afflict willingly 
     Or grieve the sons of mankind.
34 To crush under one’s feet 
     All the prisoners of the land,
35 To deprive a man of justice 
     In the presence of the Most High,
36 To defraud someone in his lawsuit—
     Of these things the Lord does not approve.
37 Who is there who speaks and it comes to pass,
     Unless the Lord has commanded it?
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High 
     That both adversity and good proceed?

39 Of what can any living mortal, or any man,
     Complain in view of his sins?
40 Let’s examine and search out our ways,
     And let’s return to the Lord.
41 We raise our heart and hands 
     Toward God in heaven;
42 We have done wrong and rebelled;
     You have not pardoned.
43 You have covered Yourself with anger 
     And pursued us;
     You have slain and have not spared.
44 You have veiled Yourself with a cloud 
     So that no prayer can pass through.
45 You have made us mere refuse and rubbish 
     In the midst of the peoples.
46 All our enemies have opened their mouths against us.
47 Panic and pitfall have come upon us,
     Devastation and destruction;
48 My eyes run down with streams of water 
     Because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 My eyes flow unceasingly,
     Without stopping,
50 Until the Lord looks down 
     And sees from heaven.
51 My eyes bring pain to my soul 
     Because of all the daughters of my city.
52 My enemies without reason 
     Hunted me down like a bird;
53 They have silenced me in the pit 
     And have thrown stones on me.
54 Waters flowed over my head;
     I said, “I am cut off!”
55 I called on Your name, Lord,
     Out of the lowest pit.
56 You have heard my voice,
     “Do not cover Your ear from my plea for relief,
     From my cry for help.”
57 You came near on the day I called to You;
     You said, “Do not fear!”
58 Lord, You have pleaded my soul’s cause;
     You have redeemed my life.
59 Lord, You have seen my oppression;
     Judge my case.
60 You have seen all their vengeance,
     All their schemes against me.
61 You have heard their reproach, Lord,
     All their schemes against me.
62 The lips of my assailants and their talk
     Are against me all day long.
63 Look at their sitting and their rising;
     I am their mocking song.
64 You will repay them, Lord,
     In accordance with the work of their hands.
65 You will give them shamelessness of heart,
     Your curse will be on them.
66 You will pursue them in anger and eliminate them 
     From under the heavens of the Lord!

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

When we sin, we will experience discomfort in our souls.  As believers, when we sin, we grieve the Holy Spirit.  And as unbelievers, as sinners, one should feel shame.  It doesn't do anyone any good if someone comes along and tries to fix their lives and the problems around them, or tells them that they're okay just the way they are.  There is more hope for them if they are brought to a point of realizing just how miserable they are while separated from the Lord.  The only hope and cure is to repent, and accept the free gift of salvation through Jesus which reconciles us to God.

As believers, we need to remember that sin impedes prayer (verse 8).  It is good to search our hearts and minds and recognize when we have sinned, in order to confess.  As believers, there isn't anything we can do or not do to lose our salvation because the Lord is faithful;  but we can certainly experience the Lord's discipline through consequences.  And even though we do not deserve His mercy or His grace, when we reconcile with Him, He is there for us.  The Lord is so good to those who seek Him and wait for Him.