The Upper Room Daily Devotionals in Nashville, Tennessee, United States "MORNING DEW" for Monday, 17 October 2016 with Scripture: Hosea 14:1-9 (13:16)

The Upper Room Daily Devotionals in Nashville, Tennessee, United States "MORNING DEW" for Monday, 17 October 2016 with Scripture: Hosea 14:1 (13:16) Shomron will bear her guilt,
for she has rebelled against her God.
They will fall by the sword,
their little ones will be dashed to pieces
and their pregnant women ripped open.
2 (1) Return, Isra’el, to Adonai your God,
for your guilt has made you stumble.
3 (2) Take words with you, and return to Adonai;
say to him, “Forgive all guilt,
and accept what is good;
we will pay instead of bulls
[the offerings of] our lips.
4 (3) Ashur will not save us,
we will not ride on horses,
and we will no longer call
what we made with our hands our gods.
For it is only in you
that the fatherless can find mercy.”
5 (4) “I will heal their disloyalty,
I will love them freely;
for my anger has turned from him.
6 (5) I will be like dew to Isra’el;
he will blossom like a lily
and strike roots like the L’vanon.
7 (6) His branches will spread out,
his beauty be like an olive tree
and his fragrance like the L’vanon.
8 (7) Again they will live in his shade and raise grain;
they will blossom like a vine,
and its aroma will be
like the wine of the L’vanon.
9 (8) Efrayim [will say], ‘What have I
to do any more with idols?’
And I, I answer and affirm him;
I am like a fresh, green cypress tree;
your fruitfulness comes from me.”
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I will be like the dew to Israel.[Hosea 14:5 (NIV)]
It was hot, and I was on a summer women’s retreat at my friend’s farm home. Everyone except me slept inside. Lying on the grass, I was sticky and uncomfortable in a sleeping bag made from a large sheet. I couldn’t sleep; so I talked to the cows as they stared back at me through the fence, and I watched the sheep munching away in the next field. From a dark blue sky a million stars sparkled back at me. Finally, I slept.
I awoke often in the night — not because I was too hot but because I was surprisingly cooled and wonderfully refreshed. A dew had settled over my sheet, wrapping me in a complete, satisfying feeling of well-being. I woke simply to enjoy that feeling.
Days later, while reading the Book of Hosea, I was reminded of the freshening dew. Hosea 14:4-5 describes Israel turning from sin. God says, “I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them. I will be like the dew to Israel.” With a thrill of recognition, I thought, Yes! I’ve experienced what that feels like. This promise to Israel reminds us that God’s love for us never wavers and provides the rest and restoration we long for.
Read more from the author, here."More from Donna Scales"

I’m passionate about the names of God and anything that describes God’s character and actions. It’s been a 15-year pursuit to know God more deeply. Why 15 years? Because that’s when someone told me about using the ABCs to praise God. That comment gave me a method for holding onto what I’d learned.
I now have 10 typed pages of names and descriptors of God: all organized under a letter of the alphabet. Each day I praise God using the list from a different letter.
One day, my 34 year-old son, Scott, and I were walking to his Saturday morning exercise class. Scott has Williams Syndrome, but he lives in an apartment on his own with the help of skills trainers—I’m one of them. I decided to use our walking time to praise the Lord using the alphabet letters. It had been a long time since I’d worked with Scott’s language skills, and I didn’t really expect him to do very well. But I was pleasantly surprised. He gave a praise for every letter, all the way to “L.” That’s when we stumbled a bit.
Scott said, or at least I thought he said, “God lowers my esteem.”
Hmm, I thought, that can’t be right. Scott loves Jesus and Jesus loves him.
Cautiously, I asked, “What do you mean, ‘God lowers your esteem’?”
“Mom, you remember I told you how awful this week was at work?” Scott works at a Goodwill Donation Center near his apartment. His outgoing and friendly personality have made him very successful at his work, but he can become anxious when a lot of people come in at the same time.
“Yes, I remember. This was a rough week for you.”
“Well, I was about to boil over, and I asked Jesus to lower my steam.”
Understanding began to creep over me. “How did Jesus answer your prayer?”
“He lowered my steam. I made it through the day.”
“Wow, Scott! You really trusted Jesus didn’t you?”
“Yeah, I did. And it worked. He lowered my steam.”
Scott's words from that day are now one of my favorite ways to praise God. These words will not be found in the Bible--they are an experiential descriptor unique and personal to me. God’s amazing character reaches the heart of all those who seek God and are open to his message.[Donna Scales, Check out Donna's blog at http://praiseposts.com.]

The Author: Donna Scales (Oregon, USA)
Thought for the Day: I want to experience God’s love like the refreshing dew.
Prayer: Dear God, help us to confess our sins to you so that we may be soothed by the dew of your forgiveness and mercy. Amen.
Prayer focus: RETREAT PARTICIPANTS AND LEADERS-------