I am the one who answers your prayers and cares for you. I am like a tree that is always green; all your fruit comes from me. Hos. 14:8

Ever put on a pair of sunglasses that makes everything look green? Maybe life needs a lens like that. When things look bleak God might  looks less loving, caring or powerful than He really is. Praying, reading the Bible, hearing about others’ experiences with Him,  and seeking out encouraging friends who love Him help us see God’s true colors.

Lord, forgive me when I despair. Help me see You as your really are in those times.

Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love.  Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you. Hos. 10:12

Righteousness is not about being good when we feel like being bad, it’s about soaking up Christ’s nature. What we want, what we like, even what we are changes because our  hearts receive the nature and nurture of Jesus. Christ is the seed, the sun, and the rain; we just work the dirt.

Lord, help me to plow up the hard places in my heart and bloom.

Then I will heal you of your faithlessness; my love will know no bounds, for my anger will be gone forever. Hos. 14:4

This is God’s response when we say to Him “in You alone.” God is not our last resort or a fallback plan after we’ve tried everything else we want to try. He offers healing for the control issues, insecurities, or impulsiveness that cause us to try to meet our own needs, feed unhealthy desires, and chase distractions instead of trusting Him for satisfaction and fulfillment.

Lord, you are my first and only hope.

Stay away from idols! I am the one who answers your prayers and cares for you.  I am like a tree that is always green; all your fruit comes from me.” Hos. 14:8

Things we enjoy can become idols if we look to them as sources of happiness, security, or comfort. Not only are we not designed to depend on our idols, we aren’t made to be self-sufficient either. We are God’s dependents, beautifully needy, nourished and restored by his extravagant love.

Lord,  I’m depending on you.