This story parallels the love story God had with Israel, and with us, His beloveds. It is the story of a God who watched as Israel turned it's back on Him, in their attempt to chase after other gods and sinful desires. I am reminded of my own wandering. I am reminded of my own unfaithfulness to the one who gave me faith. It can be disturbing to see yourself through the lens of truth. No one wants to think about the repercussions of selfish choices, they just want the immediate relief or benefits from those choices. We don't want to consider the cost of living for self. But the cost is a separation from Christ. The cost is very great. But there is still hope... Hosea 2: 14-20:
14"Therefore, behold, I will allure her,
and bring her into the wilderness,
and speak tenderly to her.
15And there I will give her her vineyards
and make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.
And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth,
as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt.
and bring her into the wilderness,
and speak tenderly to her.
15And there I will give her her vineyards
and make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.
And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth,
as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt.
16"And in that day, declares the LORD, you will call me 'My Husband,' and no longer will you call me 'My Baal.' 17For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, and they shall be remembered by name no more. 18And I will make for them a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety. 19And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. 20 I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the LORD."
This picture is unnervingly beautiful and utterly romantic. This love is what you read about in fairy tales, only more profound and more full because it is real. It is a love that says, though you have forsaken me, yet I will still love you and call you mine. This passage speaks to the heart of a woman by it's promises to love unconditionally and to pursue whole heartedly.
In my life I have felt love, and I have been loved in return. However, I have not felt pursued. I have not felt that I was beloved. To hear these words from God, is the language of love. And it speaks right to my heart. It says that though I have been unfaithful to the Lord, He has not been unfaithful to me. He has loved me in my wilderness. And in that love He has led me to the valley. What brings me great comfort and peace is the idea that in this valley, He will speak tenderly to me. In fact, He will call me in to such places in order to do just that. These tender moments with Him are planned and they are meant to be intimate. He has come looking for us there, in order to lead us out and to restore us to who we are in Him. This is the hope we have: our Jesus loves us enough to give us back what we do not deserve, and that is more of Him. He makes these valleys a door to hope. He reminds us of the days when we first met Him and the promises He made to us in those days. He lets us return to those moments when we first fell in love with Him, to reassure us that He has never fallen out of love with us. Even in our wilderness. Even as we chose other things to love.
And when we choose Him, when we run in to the arms of His unfailing love, He lets us call Him "Husband". He allows us to enter in to the most intimate of unions with Him. And in doing so, He promises to provide safety. He seals Himself to us forever, so that we will always be covered in His love. For better or for worse. These last lines are so enormous that they bear repeating:
And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the LORD.
So, yes, I may be walking in unsafe places and I may be thirsting for things unclean. But the Lord has plans to allure me and to draw me back to Him. And by remembering His promises and His love for me, I am drawn back to Him, time and time again. He loves me enough to return to me and betroth Himself to me and to let me know Him. That is a truth to stand on and a love to cherish.
This is a link to a song based on these verses. Listen to it if you want and be reminded of it's truth. This is my prayer for you: that you would let God be your Husband. And that you would allow Him to make you His beloved. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3dBZu2yyRs
Beautifully written. Like you, only by God have I felt truly beloved and cherished! What an awesome God we have.
ReplyDeleteI stumbled upon your blog when looking for a picture of someone running through a finish line (Amazing Race). Wow. You put into words what has been my experience the last two or so weeks. Of course, it's been my experience every so often, but I thought I'd been more aware of my tendencies of late. It caught me by surprise when I realized I was going after easy choices and shallow comforts. I love how you worded that. Thank you, to whom ever you are, for being so vulnerable. My relationship with my Jesus benefits from you!
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