Daily Devotional for January 14, 2015
Hosea 2
Scripture:
Hosea 2:5b–8,13 “She said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my food and my water, my wool and my linen, my olive oil and my drink.’ Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes; I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way. She will chase after her lovers but not catch them; she will look for them but not find them. Then she will say, ‘I will go back to my husband as at first, for then I was better off than now.’ She has not acknowledged that I was the one who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil, who lavished on her the silver and gold—which they used for Baal.
“I will punish her for the days she burned incense to the Baals; she decked herself with rings and jewelry, and went after her lovers, but me she forgot,” declares the Lord (NIV).
Observation:
Some people constantly struggle with believing that the grass is always greener on the other side. It’s the attraction of anything different from what they have that seems to draw them away. That seems to be the case in this passage. Hosea’s wife is pursuing new lovers, believing that they are the source of her physical and emotional provision. But the reality is that all along her husband was her greatest provider. And God is using the unfaithfulness of Hosea’s wife to communicate His people’s attitude toward Him.
As the bride of Christ, we can be tempted to follow the same path. It could be as similar as Hosea’s account by finding emotional provision in the arms of an out-of-wedlock relationship. Or it could be as different as showing greater loyalty to your boss than to God because you errantly believe the employer is your source of provision. Ultimately all provision comes from God, whether it be employment, relationships, or even breath to survive. It’s up to us to choose to celebrate His provision through fidelity or to experience the unfortunate outcome of unfaithfulness.
Application:
- Personal Application: In what ways have you been tempted to be unfaithful to God? Unfaithfulness becomes a temptation when we look for provision elsewhere. Through complete trust in Him you can overcome that temptation!
- Family Devotional: Read the Scripture portion to your family. Give them a few examples of how you show your faithfulness to God, and allow them to share ways they can be faithful. Pray for your family.
Prayer:
- Personal Prayer Focus: If you’ve shown unfaithfulness to God, ask Him for forgiveness. If you’ve been faithful recently, take time to thank Him for continuing to be faithful to you.
- Family Prayer Focus: Pray that your family will remain faithful to God, in times of both feast and famine, by trusting on His provision.
Three Year Reading Plan for Sunday, January 10 – Sunday, January 17:
- Sunday, January 10: Psalm 70-71
- Monday, January 11: Psalm 72-73
- Tuesday, January 12: Psalm 74-75
- Wednesday, January 13: Hosea 1
- Thursday, January 14: Hosea 2
- Friday, January 15: Hosea 3-4
- Saturday, January 16: Hosea 5
- Sunday, January 17: Hosea 6
—Gene Crawford is an editor for the Assemblies of God Division of Publishing.
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