Reflection: Faithfulness

As life has blurred by these past couple of months, one thing has stayed constant and firm and real-- the loving presence of God in my life always welcoming me back when I stumble. Depending on who you are, that might ring true or sound totally naive or bogus (or both)-- but stick with me for a second.

I've talked to many people, both stranger and friend who share that latter view. When they ask for proof or cause, many times all I can give is the story of my life and how God has been faithful to me, in good times and bad.

There's one person in particular that I think about often, who was part of the student ministry I volunteer with. After much wrestling with her own self worth, and the notion of a God that supposedly loved her, she sighed and walked away. She believed God couldn't possibly love her. I hurt so much for her, and for people who do not know there is a God that loves them more than life itself. In recent weeks I've been reading through one of the finest examples God gives of his unconditional love for us: the story of a man, Hosea and his unfaithful wife Gomer.

Despite their names (um, Gomer is a woman?) these two represent the extent of God's love for us in pretty extreme terms. In the book of Hosea, God, in frustration and hurt over the Isrealite's unfaithfulness to him, tells his prophet Hosea to go marry and remain faithful to a prostitute. Yep, that's Gomer. So he does, and in accordance with God's wishes he loves her well, though she...well, let's just say she's got some seriously wandering eyes. Gomer leaves Hosea time and time again, and he lovingly retrieves her repeatedly, even buying her out of slavery (that she got herself into). 

If you aren't following, this isn't just an image of Isreal's idolatry and God's faithfulness. It's the story of our wandering eyes and a God who not just takes us back, but searches us out. Even in our mess of imperfection he desires relationship with us-- even if you don't know him, he knows you.

That is why I live my life in acknowledgement to God, because he bestows love on me that I certainly have not earned and when I've been open to it, he's grown me in ways I never could have imagined.

Just thought I'd share. :) If you are interested, I've been reading through Hosea accompanied by the awesome daily study at She Reads Truth-- highly recommended for reflection and full understanding of the text.