Good morning,
The verse that I am going to share with you is taken from
several Bible versions; they are the New Living Translation, the
Message, and the Amplified. It is Hosea 6:3-6;
"Yes, let us know (recognize, be acquainted with, and understand) Him;
let us be zealous to know the Lord (to appreciate, give heed to and
cherish Him). He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or
the coming of rains as of early spring. O Israel and Judah, what should I
do with you, asks the Lord? For your {wandering} love vanishes like
the morning mist and disappears like the dew in the sunlight. That’s why I use prophets to shake you to attention, why my words cut you to the quick: To wake you up to my judgment blazing as light. For I desire and delight in dutiful steadfast love and goodness (I'm after love that lasts, not more religion) not sacrifice and the knowledge of and acquaintance with God more than burnt offerings." God
wants us to respond to His great love, by loving Him with the same
tenacity. He gave us His love so that we can do it too. (Rom. 5:5) We should be sounding like this; "God, You're my God! I can't get enough of you! I've worked up such hunger and thirst for God traveling across dry and
weary deserts. So here I am in the place of worship, eyes open, drinking
in your strength and glory. In your generous love I am really living at
last!" (Ps. 63:1-3) God desires and delights in us giving Him dutiful steadfast love. Dutiful is conduct that is due [God], respect and obedience; obligatory tasks. One of the most important ways we show our love is by obeying God; "If you love Me, keep My commandments (My Word, My way of doing things). [John 14:15] So we must show dutiful love, let's remind ourselves of steadfast love. Steadfast, here are some of the synonyms for this word; abiding, ardent, changeless, dedicated, dependable, enduring, faithful, firm, fixed, inflexible, intense, reliable, rigid, unbending, and unmoving. Sounds
like God should be able to count on us always loving Him, not wavering
in our love. We can be dependable lovers if we obey some hints in the
Word of God to keep ourselves fired up in our love. "Joyful are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my home!" (Pro. 8:34) Listen
means to attend closely for the purpose of hearing, to pay attention,
to wait attentively for a sound. Watch is to expect and to be attentive,
to be alertly on the lookout, to observe as to see what comes, is done
or happens. Wait is to keep and guard, to stand the same until something
expected happens. Wisdom spoken of in this
chapter equals God, so we must be prepared every day to listen, watch,
and wait on our God in love. The Word assures us that with all that
seeking we will find Him, whom our soul loves. Sometimes we become
impatient because He doesn't always say what we want to hear, or come
the way
we are expecting, but be alert He will come. After all He invited us to
come, it would be impolite for Him not to speak or show up, and He is
never impolite!
several Bible versions; they are the New Living Translation, the
Message, and the Amplified. It is Hosea 6:3-6;
"Yes, let us know (recognize, be acquainted with, and understand) Him;
let us be zealous to know the Lord (to appreciate, give heed to and
cherish Him). He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or
the coming of rains as of early spring. O Israel and Judah, what should I
do with you, asks the Lord? For your {wandering} love vanishes like
the morning mist and disappears like the dew in the sunlight. That’s why I use prophets to shake you to attention, why my words cut you to the quick: To wake you up to my judgment blazing as light. For I desire and delight in dutiful steadfast love and goodness (I'm after love that lasts, not more religion) not sacrifice and the knowledge of and acquaintance with God more than burnt offerings." God
wants us to respond to His great love, by loving Him with the same
tenacity. He gave us His love so that we can do it too. (Rom. 5:5) We should be sounding like this; "God, You're my God! I can't get enough of you! I've worked up such hunger and thirst for God traveling across dry and
weary deserts. So here I am in the place of worship, eyes open, drinking
in your strength and glory. In your generous love I am really living at
last!" (Ps. 63:1-3) God desires and delights in us giving Him dutiful steadfast love. Dutiful is conduct that is due [God], respect and obedience; obligatory tasks. One of the most important ways we show our love is by obeying God; "If you love Me, keep My commandments (My Word, My way of doing things). [John 14:15] So we must show dutiful love, let's remind ourselves of steadfast love. Steadfast, here are some of the synonyms for this word; abiding, ardent, changeless, dedicated, dependable, enduring, faithful, firm, fixed, inflexible, intense, reliable, rigid, unbending, and unmoving. Sounds
like God should be able to count on us always loving Him, not wavering
in our love. We can be dependable lovers if we obey some hints in the
Word of God to keep ourselves fired up in our love. "Joyful are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my home!" (Pro. 8:34) Listen
means to attend closely for the purpose of hearing, to pay attention,
to wait attentively for a sound. Watch is to expect and to be attentive,
to be alertly on the lookout, to observe as to see what comes, is done
or happens. Wait is to keep and guard, to stand the same until something
expected happens. Wisdom spoken of in this
chapter equals God, so we must be prepared every day to listen, watch,
and wait on our God in love. The Word assures us that with all that
seeking we will find Him, whom our soul loves. Sometimes we become
impatient because He doesn't always say what we want to hear, or come
the way
we are expecting, but be alert He will come. After all He invited us to
come, it would be impolite for Him not to speak or show up, and He is
never impolite!
Here is another verse that shows the importance of putting God first; "I love those who love me, and those who seek me early and diligently shall find me." (Pro. 8:17) So how about it? Early
simply means this, to seek diligently and earnestly, it means near the beginning of a course, time, or period. It means first in place, time,
or course of action. Hey, no matter how we
slice it God desires to be first place in His lover's life, don't you? Nobody really wants to feel like they are
second place. Look it up and see how many times "early" is in
connection to seeking God. He wants you fresh and first before any other
lovers can write on your heart! Let's keep our love burning where we
can't get enough of Him.
simply means this, to seek diligently and earnestly, it means near the beginning of a course, time, or period. It means first in place, time,
or course of action. Hey, no matter how we
slice it God desires to be first place in His lover's life, don't you? Nobody really wants to feel like they are
second place. Look it up and see how many times "early" is in
connection to seeking God. He wants you fresh and first before any other
lovers can write on your heart! Let's keep our love burning where we
can't get enough of Him.
Love,
Pastor D.
Daughters of Z 