House Divided II

I will be like the dew to Israel;  he shall blossom like the lily... they shall blossom like the vine,  their fragrance shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

 - From Hosea 14

There's a little sequence of beautiful illustrations nestled in the middle of Hosea 14, framed by the lines quoted above. It compares Israel to a lily, to a growing vine with roots that spread out, and shoots that become full and fragrant. 

Hosea 14 is a chapter of great encouragement. God says He will even heal Israel's disloyalty.

"Disloyalty" is portrayed as a sickness, a disease that must be healed. And, that it is. It's one thing to be disloyal to someone that has not earned your trust or disloyalty. But far different it is, to be disloyal to your Creator, your Protector, your Guide and Master. 

God wants our individuality. He longs for us to put forth our branches and become something unique and special. He is the only Being that wants us to be who we really are . . . but who He made us to be; not the person we think we are, or think we want to be. 

We want to be different because we just want to be different. But God wants us to be different because that's how He made us. Unique, and distinct.

He deals with us all individually. He meets with us one-on-one. He walks with us in His garden. He loves to commune, to be present; to laugh and listen. And then as our individuality emerges, we look and see that we have actually grown into something much bigger than ourselves. We become part of a greater Body: we see that we are actually part of a family; or nation; or Church. 

And in that regard our uniqueness must become connected to the others. We are greater than the sum of our parts. He look around and see that, if we are a leaf, that we are surrounded by countless other leaves, or by branches that connect us together; or to a trunk. Some of us give forth a fragrance. Some of us flower in the spring. But we are all part of the same bush. 

We have to have a common purpose. Otherwise, that which makes us special will die.

And the world loses the chance to enjoy me, and you.

The passage in Hosea begins with God describing the wonderful things He will do for "him," for Israel. He will be like dew "to him."

But by the end of the passage, God is talking about "them." They shall blossom. 

The narrative has gone from the one, to the many.

And the many are connected. There are many eaves, many branches. But only one bush. 

So that, you can be who you really are. But if you get too far out there, you can no longer connect to the rest of the bush. You lose your lifeline. You wither and die. 

No person is an island.

God built a great nation. He makes beautiful families. And He built His Church.

But we must be united. For better or worse . . . we must cling to one another.

Even when it gets awkward, or hard.

God made families, and nations, and churches . . . so that we could practice unconditional love. 

We might as well get good at it. We'll be doing it, forever.