HOSEA 2:14-23 (MSG)
“And now, here’s what I’m going to do: I’m going to start all over again. I’m taking her back out into the wilderness where we had our first date, and I’ll court her. I’ll give her bouquets of roses. I’ll turn Heartbreak Valley into Acres of Hope. She’ll respond like she did as a young girl, those days when she was fresh out of Egypt. At that time, you’ll address me, ‘Dear husband!’ Never again will you address me, ‘My slave-master!’ I’ll wash your mouth out with soap, get rid of all the dirty false-god names, not so much as a whisper of those names again. At the same time, I’ll make a peace treaty between you and wild animals and birds and reptiles, And get rid of all weapons of war.
Think of it! Safe from beasts and bullies! And then I’ll marry you for good—forever! I’ll marry you true and proper, in love and tenderness. Yes, I’ll marry you and neither leave you nor let you go. You’ll know me, God, for who I really am. “On the very same day, I’ll answer. I’ll answer the sky, sky will answer earth, Earth will answer grain and wine and olive oil, and they’ll all answer Jezreel. I’ll plant her in the good earth. I’ll have mercy on No-Mercy. I’ll say to Nobody, ‘You’re my dear Somebody,’ and he’ll say ‘You’re my God!’” Hosea 2:14-23 has been a lifeline scripture for me since 2020. After graduating high school, the uncertainty I felt about going to college was extremely intimidating and brought a lot of second-guessing to my heart. I was alone and in a new place and everything seemed hopeless. Hosea is not a book I read “for fun” so when I felt the Lord leading me to read it, I was very hesitant and nervous… because I know the content of Hosea, “It’s about bull sacrifices and people who are 800 years old and it’s not going to apply to me,“ I thought. BOY WAS I WRONG!!!!
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When I read the verses of Hosea 2:14-23 my heart ached and yearned for my first love - Jesus ( our husband ) - and it reminded me of how much God loves me for ME!! Not for what I strive to be, pretend to have, or what I claim to do for Lord, but for who I AM and who He created me to be. With all my flaws and imperfections, my doubts, fears, heartaches, and unseen pains nobody knows about. He never gets tired of reminding us of who we are IN HIM, and how far we have come from where we used to be!