S) "12 Sow with a view to righteousness,
Reap in accordance with kindness;
Break up your fallow ground,
For it is time to seek the Lord
Until He comes to rain righteousness on you."
Hosea 10:12 (NASB)
O) This verse is a call to repentance. Hosea uses farming terms to describe how seeking the LORD, and serving Him, and obeying Him, takes determined effort. When a farmer sows seed, he does so with a view to harvest. The word "kindness," there, can also be translated as "loyalty." When a farmer is reaping, he does so faithfully for what he has sown. God is calling for the same kind of labored efforts to be made in following after Him. Fallow ground is soil that may have previously been plowed, but has no seed in it. Usually, that is to allow the soil to become fertile again through crop rotation. Hosea called to the readers to prepare their unfruitful hearts, seek the LORD, and remain faithful until He brings about righteousness through grace.
A) The highlight, to me, is really the second line. As in Matthew 13:23, I need to treat my heart as soil, and God's word is the seed. There have been areas of my heart (talents, passions, desires) that have not been particularly fruitful, and I haven't necessarily allowed God's seed to really penetrate those areas. As God softens those areas of my heart, it is up to me to prepare myself to receive from the LORD. I need to seek Him out, for His words to be sown, and allow Him to bring forth righteous fruit in new areas of my heart.
P) Father, thank You for humbling me, and softening my heart, and showing me the areas in which I still need to grow. Give me the courage I need, and the discipline it takes, to make the changes I know need to happen. Motivate me to action. Help me to see the long term perspective, God. Help me to sow with a view to righteousness, obtained by grace, and let me seek You earnestly. Open my eyes to see the very real benefit of giving every area of my heart to You. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.
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