Better Than Black Friday

When can deals be better than Black Friday? The weekend before Thanksgiving! I had been plotting for two days. An I-love-it-but-it’s-way-too-expensive store was having the amazing 60% off only-twice-a-year sale.

I just HAD to figure out a way to fit a trip to that store into a Saturday that was already slatted for bathroom cleaning, a softball tournament and running my daughter to meet her friends at the mall. Ahhh…THE MALL!

I wasn’t familiar with this particular mall, but what if they had the store? My laptop revealed they did! Arming myself, I checked the mall map to locate the fastest entrance. I mapquested the length of time from the mall to the softball field. If, and I mean a big if, I played it all out perfect, I might be able to squeeze in a quick 15 minute peak at the deals of the year! It was going to be really tight. It would cause stress for me (and my kids), but I was sure it would be worth it.

Before this whirlwind of a day began, I took time with Jesus. Even as I read His word, my mind kept going back to the sale; back to my plan. Would I really be able to pull it off without getting someone upset with me?

That’s when my Bible reading took me to Hosea 8.  The Israelites are at it again; looking to things instead of God to bring them joy; make them complete. God told it like it was; those things were“other lovers.” He told them that their offerings to Him had become sinful.

Sinful? That struck me. How can an offering become sinful?

He wasn’t pleased with them. In the middle of their serving; they forgot the One they were serving. They forgot their Maker. That’s what I was doing. My body was serving; I was reading my Bible, but my heart was in the mall.

Checking off the box of serving God; reading my devotion or saying my prayers are not enough for God. God loves you; doing is not what He wants from me. What He wants from me is me.

He wants my heart and He wants it all. Why? Because when He has all of my heart, He can give me all of His joy.

He wants to take my empty heart and fill it with His perfect love. He wants to remove your depression or sadness and replace it with fullfillment and purpose.

He wants me to pursue Him as He is pursuing me. He tells me how in Hosea 10:12:

“Sow righteousness for yourselves,
reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;
for it is time to seek the LORD,
until he comes and showers his righteousness on you.”

I pursue Him. I sow. I reap. I break up. I choose to seek.

This season is so backward, isn’t it? When pursuing Him should be more on our minds than ever, we have to battle to focus on Him.

Lord, help us. Help us to turn our thoughts to you and away from our Christmas list. Help us to sow rightness in the way we talk today. Help us to reap the fruit of your unfailing love in our outlook today. Help us to break up the unplowed ground of our hearts today; making it ready to receive all you have for us today. As we seek You, may You come and shower us with your rightness. Thank you!

Lynn

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