“So you,

by the help of your God,

return.

Observe mercy and justice. 

And wait on your God continually.”

Hosea 12:6

A few thoughts on Hosea 12:6…

“So you”…..yes, you ❤

“by the help of your God, return.”  It doesn’t say just turn, return. Nope. It says, BY THE HElP OF YOUR GOD return.  Even in that, He grants help to those who ask Him for it. I love that.

“Observe mercy and justice.”  Observe–study, watch—not merely glance at or see. Nope, OBSERVE–be cognizant of what you’re seeing. Observe–take note.  The root ‘shemor’ means to keep, watch, preserve. We seem to be great at glancing these days. Glancing at phones. Glancing at others. Glancing at the Word of God (that one hit me hard). But we are called to observe.

Observe, keep, watch, preserve what?   Mercy.  Not just mercy. Justice. Sometimes justice precedes mercy…for where there is justice, often there’s a cost, a consequence, a debt to be paid. Thus, the need for….mercy.

“And wait on your God continually.”  Hmm… At first I think of waiting as being patient, listening, following. But as a mom of 6 who cooked a meal or two, I think of waiting—as serving, serving, and serving again. That’s no small thing. It’s big. Waiting on God is serving and being diligent with actions to do what I’m called to do.  Continually. Not just certain days of the week. Nope, we are called to ‘wait on God continually.”

AND…so, we are called to love others with the mercy and justice, and love God by waiting on Him continually. Waiting on God continually should translate into observing mercy and justice. It just should. Not wimpy mercy. Nope, we are called to mercy that lives and breathes and costs something. The Hebrew here comes from “chacad” which Strong’s concordance includes the phrase “they took pains to show him courtesy.”  There’s a cost. It’s not easy to grant mercy when the world would demand a price be paid. Mercy absorbs the ache and pours out the kindness that sees beyond what’s seen. So, loving God by continually waiting, loving others by granting mercy and justice is a beautiful cycle that translates into impacting our little world, and changing us in the process.

Am thinking our world could use quite a big dose of what God has called us to. I wonder what would happen if we took the call seriously.  I appreciated the reminder, the reboot for me, and just wanted to share my two cents. ❤

Blessings~

Heather