The Lord has called this day to be a day of repentance. Get before Him and ask for forgiveness for all the things that we do daily which are not pleasing to Him. We don’t do this just to seek forgiveness; we do it to get in a right relationship with God. While reading the message, insert the name of your city or state where appropriate.
Today’s Prayer
Father, I come to you on behalf of my brothers and sisters in Christ everywhere to ask that You help us walk closely with You daily, taking time to read Your Word, so that we will come to know You, and recognize Your Spirit’s leading, so that we will not be deceived or coerced into following “another Jesus.” Give us the courage and wisdom to “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.” Help us “fight the good fight of faith,” that we may be Your true witness. In the matchless name of Jesus I pray, Amen.
Let’s eat.
A Call to Repentance
Hosea 6
”come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces; now he will heal us. He has injured us; now he will bandage our wounds. In just a short time he will restore us, so that we may live in his presence. Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring.” “O Israel and Judah, what should I do with you?” asks the Lord. “For your love vanishes like the morning mist and disappears like dew in the sunlight. I sent my prophets to cut you to pieces—to slaughter you with my words, with judgments as inescapable as light. I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings. But like Adam, you broke my covenant and betrayed my trust. “Gilead is a city of sinners, tracked with footprints of blood. Priests form bands of robbers, waiting in ambush for their victims. They murder travelers along the road to Shechem and practice every kind of sin. Yes, I have seen something horrible in Ephraim and Israel: My people are defiled by prostituting themselves with other gods! “O Judah, a harvest of punishment is also waiting for you, though I wanted to restore the fortunes of my people.
Quote of the Day
To strive in prayer means to struggle through those hindrances which would restrain or even prevent us entirely from continuing in persevering prayer. It means to be so watchful at all times that we can notice when we become slothful in prayer and that we go to the Spirit of prayer to have this remedied. In this struggle, too, the decisive factor is the Spirit of prayer. ~Ole Kristian O. Hallesby~