What Direction Are You Heading?

Hosea 12:6 “Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment and wait on thy God continually.”

Have you ever tried to help someone who does not want any help? I have—and believe me, it’s a lost cause! Until a person acknowledges that they need help and is willing to receive the help, nothing can be done for him. In the book of Hosea, the nation of Israel was a people that stubbornly refused the help of the Lord. Sadly, in Hosea 11:7, the Lord says, “And my people are bent to backsliding from me: though they called them to the most High, none at all would exalt him.” They had turned from the right way and were trying to be self-sufficient.

This backsliding was nothing new for the Israelites. This pattern of stubbornness can be traced all the way back to their “father,” Jacob. He had been a man who tried to live without the help of God—tricking, conniving, and manipulating his way through life. But when life caught up with him, Jacob finally realized that he needed help from God. This was the night he wrestled with the angel of God at Bethel. Jacob’s stubbornness was broken, and he begged for help from the only One who had the power to help him. After reminding the Israelites of Jacob, Hosea pleads, “Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment, and wait on thy God continually.” God could not help them until they were willing to be helped.

Throughout the whole book of Hosea, you see that God takes our backsliding personally. The Bible recounts the sad story of Hosea and his wife—he, a faithful and good man, married an unfaithful woman who lived shamefully. Hosea’s unconditional love for his unfaithful wife pictures the unconditional love of God for His people. Imagine how hurtful it would be if your spouse started looking to other people instead of you for close companionship and advice!

When we turn from the Lord, who redeemed us, and start looking to other people and things to supply our needs, God hurts like a husband would for his unfaithful wife!

Does God seem distant today? God can seem distant when you are facing the wrong way, so check the direction you are heading. Are you heading down the path of righteousness turned toward God, or have you turned away and started down the lonely road of rebellion? God desires for you to come back to Him—and you can today! “Therefore turn thou to thy God. . . .”