Hosea 13:5-6–It was I who knew you in the wilderness,

There is something to be said about having a relationship with people who knew you intimately during tough times in life.  For example, how proud a parent can be for a child they’ve raised, enduring all their mistakes, to finally see them stable and “successful”.  Yet nothing could be more devastating to that parent, than to know what you’ve endured from that child, and they forgot all the sacrifices you made to bless them…

From this passage in Hosea, we see the vulnerability of our Lord and His heart towards His children, and how they have grieved Him.  God brought Israel from literally nothing.  He had them conquer and overcome so many obstacles by His grace and mercy, but they forgot Him once they received prosperity from Him!

One of the most dangerous things to our faith is not hardship, because hardship can strip us from focusing on material blessings to focus on God.  No one when given a diagnose of a fatal disease, relishes over their new wooden floors or car!  But when we prosper in the blessings that God has showered us with, that is when we really get a chance to see our heart, whether we are grounded in a relationship, or we are “serving God” to just prosper and then get lax in our devotion?

When we think about how good God has been to us, and how He has furnished our life many times with more than what we need.  What keeps us grateful is not the “things” He has given us, though wonderful!  But gratitude in Jesus has to start with Him being there when no one was there.   That’s our redemption, salvation, and what a personal relationship with Christ signifies!

So whether God gives us more blessings in relationships, material wealth, etc., or prunes everyone and everything (Job 13:14-15, 1 Peter 2:20).  Grace from true worship will fight to be faithful to Him!  Because He was with us in the “wilderness” when on one was, so how can we forget Him!

In His Lord, LD