Read Hosea 14:1-9
I will be like the dew to Israel.
- Hosea 14:5 (NIV)
It was hot, and I was on a summer women’s retreat at my friend’s farm home. Everyone except me slept inside. Lying on the grass, I was sticky and uncomfortable in a sleeping bag made from a large sheet. I couldn’t sleep; so I talked to the cows as they stared back at me through the fence, and I watched the sheep munching away in the next field. From a dark blue sky a million stars sparkled back at me. Finally, I slept.
I awoke often in the night — not because I was too hot but because I was surprisingly cooled and wonderfully refreshed. A dew had settled over my sheet, wrapping me in a complete, satisfying feeling of well-being. I woke simply to enjoy that feeling.
Days later, while reading the Book of Hosea, I was reminded of the freshening dew. Hosea 14:4-5 describes Israel turning from sin. God says, “I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them. I will be like the dew to Israel.” With a thrill of recognition, I thought, Yes! I’ve experienced what that feels like. This promise to Israel reminds us that God’s love for us never wavers and provides the rest and restoration we long for.
Thought for the Day:
I want to experience God’s love like the refreshing dew.
Prayer: Dear God, help us to confess our sins to you so that we may be soothed by the dew of your forgiveness and mercy. Amen.
Prayer Focus: RETREAT PARTICIPANTS AND LEADERS
The scripture quotation, unless otherwise indicated, is from the NEW REVISED STANDARD VERSION of the Bible, copyright © 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
I will be like the dew to Israel.
It was hot, and I was on a summer women’s retreat at my friend’s farm home. Everyone except me slept inside. Lying on the grass, I was sticky and uncomfortable in a sleeping bag made from a large sheet. I couldn’t sleep; so I talked to the cows as they stared back at me through the fence, and I watched the sheep munching away in the next field. From a dark blue sky a million stars sparkled back at me. Finally, I slept.
I awoke often in the night — not because I was too hot but because I was surprisingly cooled and wonderfully refreshed. A dew had settled over my sheet, wrapping me in a complete, satisfying feeling of well-being. I woke simply to enjoy that feeling.
Days later, while reading the Book of Hosea, I was reminded of the freshening dew. Hosea 14:4-5 describes Israel turning from sin. God says, “I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them. I will be like the dew to Israel.” With a thrill of recognition, I thought, Yes! I’ve experienced what that feels like. This promise to Israel reminds us that God’s love for us never wavers and provides the rest and restoration we long for.
Thought for the Day:
I want to experience God’s love like the refreshing dew.
Prayer: Dear God, help us to confess our sins to you so that we may be soothed by the dew of your forgiveness and mercy. Amen.
Prayer Focus: RETREAT PARTICIPANTS AND LEADERS
The scripture quotation, unless otherwise indicated, is from the NEW REVISED STANDARD VERSION of the Bible, copyright © 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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