God can be a funny guy. I don’t really mean funny, ha-ha…but funny, perplexing in a humorous way. I know full well that God teaches us the things in life in ways we don’t even understand at the time; but in hindsight it all becomes pretty clear.
I was reading the book of Hosea the other day and it struck me as a prime example of what I’m referring to.
Hosea was a prophet, in the 8th century BC, in a time when all of Israel was blatantly disregarding all that was taught to them about serving the Lord. They were practicing Baal worship along with all types of debauchery. Not a good time to be a prophet if you asked me. That said, Hosea was commissioned by God to declare His unfavor to all the land that turned their backs on Him. Interestingly, though, God also commanded Hosea to marry a practicing prostitute and raise her illegitimate children. Together they had several children of their own but his wife, Gomer, continued with her unfaithful lifestyle. Even when she had rejoined a brothel Hosea was commanded by God to purchase her release and continue to keep her as his wife. She was continually unfaithful yet, every time, Hosea was told to take her back.
Basically what God was teaching Hosea was, “Now you know how I feel! Now you can speak with a better understanding”. Israel’s unfaithfulness to God needed to be felt in an intimate way by Hosea in order for him to carry out God’s will.
We all go through some pretty crazy times in life, and it’s usually pretty hard to understand why we go through them. Keep in mind that God may be—and probably is—preparing us for some future commission. Being used by God is truly a blessing but we may just need a bit of divine “understanding” heaped on us before we can tackle and truly empathize with whatever situation we find ourselves in.
Blessings!
Greg Morton
© April 24, 2010
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Saturday, April 24, 2010
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