"Take with you words and return to the Lord;
Say to Him, 'Take away all iniquity; Accept what is good'."
(Hosea 14:2)
Words have power. Especially when there is a life that backs up those words. A life that is ready to display what the words are communicating.
Lincoln's address at the dedication of a cemetery at Gettysburg.
Martin Luther King's "I have a Dream."
Ronald Reagan's "Mr. Gorbachov, take down this wall!"
Perhaps we doubt this, though, in our present day's spray of words, words that feel hollow as they are barked about by political wannabes.
Still, God takes words seriously, especially sincere words of repentance.
Say to God, "Assyria shall not save us;
we will not ride on horses;
and we will say no more, 'Our God'
to the work of our hands."
(Hosea 14:3)
Which of our words gets God's attention? Jesus noted that some think that "by their many words" they have a better chance of getting God's attention, and perhaps securing their petition.
Not with the Father-God Jesus knew. The true God always looks beyond the words to both the heart and the life of the one who prays. "Is he genuine in this?" "Is she simply going through the motions, or will her life match the words I'm hearing from her lips?"
For Ephraim (nation of Israel) to have a chance at God's future blessing, "he" needed to come back to the Lord with words that would be matched by deeds. A heart that longed to be cleansed from sin. A life that would no longer worship what "he" made. A trust that would no longer be misplaced in a foreign power or a false god.
"I will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely,
for my anger has turned from them."
(Hosea 14:4)
Any nation, any family, any person can return to the Lord on any given day. Come with words of personal repentance. Come with a heart that is genuine. Come with a life ready to be aligned in trust and obedience to the God whose love is freely given.
No matter where you may be right now, take the right road home in the right way.
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