During the wilderness journey, Israel continually ran from God, even when God provided for them and proved Himself to them over and over. God healed them, showed His gracious love to them and protected them even in captivity. God eventually freed them from captivity, and gave them water, food, a pillar of fire to keep them warm in the desert night and a cloud to keep them cool from the burning desert sun during the day. Their clothing never wore out even when they rebelled and they had to wander in the wilderness for forty years (Hosea 11:1-4; Deuteronomy 29:5).
God never provoked Israel to wrath and He gave us His
example so we could parent our own children by His example. God is righteous
and just. He disciplines us, as He wants us to discipline our own children,
with mercy and truth (Ephesians 6:4). God also gives us a free will
to allow us to choose whether or not to serve Him with our life. Daily, He
draws us to Himself; however, we can reject His love and live life our own way
if we want to do so. It is our choice.
God is our Father, not a dictator. He never takes delight
in the destruction of the wicked, but He does take delight in the death of His
Saints (Ezekiel 18:23; Psalm 116:15). Those concepts are just
the opposite to our human way of thinking. We want the perpetrators in our life
to suffer as much as they make us suffer, and we grieve ceaselessly when our
loved ones die. If we were to realize that God wants to give us His heart, we
would start to feel as He does.
We would do all we could to win the wicked to Christ; and
we would celebrate rather than mourn, when our dear ones graduate from the
school of life and go to their reward in Heaven to live with King Jesus. God
adopted us into His family and He laid down His life for us; yet, we walk away
from His precepts. Our disobedience breaks God’s heart, because it declares our
rebellion and our rejection of His will and ways. We often act as if He is a
cruel taskmaster instead of our loving God and Savior.
Not long after God created mankind, He regretted His
actions, because of the wild behavior going on in this world (Genesis
6:5-6). Each sinful act broke His heart. We all break God’s heart
every time we sin. Not only because it defies His holiness, but also because He
sees how sin destroys us as well. God’s remedy for this penchant of ours was to
become one of us. He gave His life as a ransom for everyone willing to humbly
surrender his or her life to Him (2 Peter 3:9). His heart is full of love for each one of us.
Prayer:
Father God, You always love those who love You. If we diligently
seek You, we will always find You (Proverbs 8:17). When we
call upon You, You are always near. You desire that the wicked will forsake
their thoughts and ways, and turn to
You. You will have compassion on them and abundantly pardon them (Isaiah 55:6-7). You are
merciful and loving in all of Your ways and we give you the glory and honor due
Your name.
Thought for the Day:
Don't be in a hurry to change your circumstances. Sit in God's presence and
learn from Him through them. When God is ready, He will change them for you.