DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- THE WHIRLWIND

 THE WHIRLWIND
Hosea 8:7
 
" 'They sow the wind and reap the whirlwind.  The stalk has no bud; it shall never produce meal. If it should produce, aliens would swallow it up. ' "
 
This adage is a variation of the Law Of The Harvest. We always reap more than we sow. To Israel, their disobedience seemed a small thing – just a breeze – but it spawned a tornado. The whirlwind brought disaster: crops that failed and enemies who stole their produce. Proverbs 22:8 says, "He who sows iniquity will reap sorrow."   Sin may seem insignificant, but it will produce more trouble than could be imagined.   But it works the other way, too. If I sow righteousness, faith, encouragement, and blessing, it will come back to me greater than I gave.
 
TODAY'S PRINCIPLE: The result of what I sow is determined by what I plant.
 
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Have a "good harvest" day.   Love you.

DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- "I DID IT MY WAY"

 "I DID IT MY WAY"
Hosea 8:4-7
 
" 'They set up kings but not by Me; they made princes but I did not hear them. From their silver and gold they made idols for themselves – that they might be cut off. Your calf [or idol] is rejected, O Samaria! My anger is aroused against them – How long until they attain their innocence? For from Israel is even this: A workman made it, and it is not God; but the calf [or idol] of Samaria shall be broken to pieces.' "
 
Frank Sinatra's signature tune could have been Israel's theme song: "I Did It My Way." They did their thing without seeking God's direction. They did what was right in their own eyes – ala Judges 23:25. Any idea of man that does not align itself with God's will is doomed to destruction. Actually, that is the course of every man. I think that I know best and can make my own decisions without God. But all of my ideas will be smashed to pieces and lay shattered at my feet. There is a place of renewed innocence, of being clean before God. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (I John 1:9). But, oh, how long it takes me to come to that altar of repentance.
 
TODAY'S PRINCIPLE: Human plans that do not seek God's will are bound to end in destruction.
 
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Have a godly day. Love you.

DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- CHOOSING THE GOOD

 CHOOSING THE GOOD
Hosea 8:1-3
 
" 'Set the trumpet to your mouth! He shall come like an eagle against the house of the LORD, because they have transgressed my covenant and rebelled against my law. Israel will cry to me, "My God, we know You!" Israel has rejected the good; the enemy will pursue him.' "

The shofar was blown for several purposes – to call the people together in convocation, and as an alarm. God instructed Hosea to sound the alarm – judgment was coming. They could cry all they wanted that they knew God, but their actions betrayed their words. They had rejected the good way – God's way – for their own way. God's way is the best way.  It leads to life and peace.  There are consequences for spurning His way. 
 
TODAY'S PRINCIPLE: It is dangerous to reject the good to follow my own way.
 
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Have a "good" day. Love you.

DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- HALF-BAKED

HALF-BAKED
Hosea 7:4-16
 
Israel is ....
"Like an oven heated by a baker – He ceases stirring the fire ....." (vs. 4)
"They are all hot, like an oven ...." (vs. 7)
"Ephraim is a cake unturned ...." (vs. 8)
"Ephraim is like a silly dove, without sense .... (vs. 11)
"They are like a treacherous bow ...." (vs. 16)
 
God describes Israel by using metaphors that paint a picture of an unfaithful nation. They were like a lazy baker who did not keep the fire going while the dough was rising. They were hot-headed, roasting their judges and kings. They were a half-baked cake, not completely devoted to God but mixing with other nations idolatries. They flitted around like a silly dove with no real direction, going to Egypt and Assyria for help. They were like an undependable bow that could not be relied on to shoot properly. All of these describe a people who had known God's revelation but rejected it to follow their own way. I want to keep my fire stirred; I want to be hot, but not hot-headed; I don't want to be half-baked in my devotion to God; I don't want to be a silly dove, flitting around from tree to tree (or philosophy to philosophy) with no real purpose; I want to be a bow that can be depended on to do what I was intended for.  I purpose not to be a half-baked Christian.   In other words, I want to be faithful to God.
 
TODAY'S PRINCIPLE:  A faithful person is whole heartedly devoted to God and can be relied on to fulfill his God-given calling.
 
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Have a faithful day.  Love you.
 

DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- PEOPLE-PLEASERS

 PEOPLE-PLEASERS
Hosea 7:3
 
" 'They make a king glad with their wickedness, and princes with their lies.' "

Sometimes those in authority over us want us to do things that we know are wrong. The temptation is to make the boss happy and keep in good favor. I remember an employer asking me to change a bill of lading to benefit the company financially. But I could not violate my conscience by lying, and I refused at the risk of being fired. I was not dismissed, and in fact, I think the boss respected my honesty. To violate what I know to be right just to please someone else is a dark hole. People in authority will always have sycophants and brown-noses who will agree with what they want to hear. It takes a strong person to stand against the crowd and speak the truth, whether it is accepted or not. There was a king who said of a prophet, "I hate him because he does not prophesy good concerning me" (I Kings 22:8). It is better to accepted by God than to make the king glad. Lord, help me to stand strong for truth and righteousness, even if it displeases the authorities.
 
TODAY'S PRINCIPLE: To make the king glad by compromising my convictions brings God's disapproval.
 
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Have a God-pleasing day. Love you.

DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- GOD SEES

 GOD SEES
Hosea 6:10, 7:1-2
 
" 'I have seen a horrible thing in the house of Israel: There is harlotry in Ephraim, Israel is defiled .... When I would have healed Israel, then the iniquity of Ephraim was uncovered, and the wickedness of Samaria, for they have committed fraud; a thief come in; a band of robbers takes spoil outside. They do not consider in their hearts that I remember all their wickedness; Now their own deeds have surrounded them; they are before My face.' "
 
Theft and fraud are always done surreptitiously, undercover. The perpetrators think that they can get away with their crimes because they think no one knows. They do not consider that God sees it all. God wanted to heal Israel but he would not as long as they would not acknowledge and confess their sin. It is a common deception to think that my sins are hidden. God wants to heal (save) me from my sin, but He will not until I bring it into the open before Him, confessing it to Him. Nothing is hidden from God – my sins are "before His face."
 
TODAY'S PRINCIPLE: Nothing is hidden from God's eyes – He sees it all.
 
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Have an "uncovered" day. Love you.

DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH YOU?

WHAT AM I TO DO WITH YOU?
Hosea 6:4, 6
 
" 'O Ephriam, what shall I do with you? O Judah, what shall I do with you? For your faithfulness is like a morning cloud, and like the early dew it goes away .... For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.' "
 
I can hear a parent, frustrated by a misbehaving child, saying, "What am I going to do with you?" The parent loves the kid too much to kill him, but is disappointed when the child messes up. Israel and Judah were those children, who's love for God was so fickle. They thought as long as they went to church, made their sacrifices, and did the religious thing that they were good with God and could mess around with other gods. God desires more than the outward show of religion that has no heart for God. A truly devout heart understands the meaning of mercy. Jesus illustrated this. He had just called Matthew – a sinner – to follow Him, and that rankled the Pharisees who prided themselves on their religiosity. Jesus said to them, "Go and learn what this means, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice.' For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance' " (Matthew 9:9-13). People who know how much they have sinned against God understand God's mercy of forgiveness. Thank You, Lord God, for your great mercy to me, the chief of sinners (I Timothy 1:15).
 
TODAY'S PRINCIPLE: God desires a people who understand how much they have been forgiven (that's mercy) rather than people who just go through the sanctimonious motions of religion, but whose hearts are far from Him.
 
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Have a merciful day. Love you.