Category: Daily Prayer

Our scripture today is ‭‭Hosea‬ ‭12‬:‭6‬ (‭ESV‬‬).

So you, by the help of your God, return, hold fast to love and justice, and wait continually for your God.

What does it mean to “wait continually for your God”? There are several other Old Testament verses that encourage us in the same way. In Psalm 27:14 we read “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” Lamentations 3:25 tells us “The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.” So waiting can be active too, seeking God’s will and presence in our lives. Perhaps the best known verse about waiting is Isaiah 40:31 “but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” Waiting on the Lord means patient faith, trusting His timing and not our own.

Gracious God, You want to be part of everything we do. Help us to be patient with each other as You are patient with us, and share Your love with the world. Amen.

Our scripture today is Hosea 10:12 (ESV).

Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you.

Even as Hosea warns the people of God’s judgement, there is a call to repentance and reconciliation with the Lord. He tells us to prepare our hearts the way a field is prepared for planting. By using examples they would understand, the prophet urges them to change, that they may be fruitful. Jesus uses the same kind of example when He tells us “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). God has reached out to us in love and asks us to receive it so that it may grow in us.

Loving Lord, we are ashamed of the ways we have wasted Your good gifts. Help us to be fruitful disciples, sharing Your love with the world. Amen.

Our scripture today is Hosea 1:10 (ESV).

Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Children of the living God.”

God is angry with His wayward children, and He directs Hosea to demonstrate how wicked their disobedience is and how badly it hurts God to see this. In this verse He repeats the promise of His covenant with Abraham (Genesis 15:5) – that the people will be numerous and have a home. Even after the horrific actions that brought on the Exile, God stands by His promise. Nothing we can do will cause Him to break this! As Paul tells us, nothing can separate us from the love of God (Romans 8:38-39).

Loving Lord, we are sorry for the awful things we have done. Forgive us, cleanse us through the gift of our Savior, and send us to share the joy of Your love everywhere. Amen.

Our scripture today is Hosea 1:1 (ESV).

The word of the Lord that came to Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.

The Book of Hosea opens with a list of the rulers in both the northern and southern kingdoms of his time. This is important for several reasons. For us reading this now, it places the writing at a specific time in history with names of kings that are mentioned in other historical records. For the Jews, genealogy has always been a part of their lives, tracing their lineage back for generations. However, by mentioning the names of kings from both kingdoms (Israel and Judah), it points to a day when God’s people will be reunited with Him and each other, without the human divisions we have created.

Patient God, as there is no division in You, there should be none between us as Your children. Help us to see each other as You see us, created in Your image and charged with sharing Your love everywhere. Amen.

Our scripture today is Daniel 9:9-10 (ESV).

To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.

Daniel offers a communal confession of sin and prayers for mercy to the people of Israel. This is what God asks of us, to acknowledge our sin and be restored within the kingdom. Humans have been rebellious children since the beginning. God has sent messengers to warn us, but we are notoriously difficult to convince. When we return in repentance, God is always waiting.

Gracious God, we are sorry for our pride and willful disobedience. Forgive us, renew us through Your spirit, and send us to share Your love with the world. Amen.

Our scripture today is Daniel 8:17 (ESV).

So he came near where I stood. And when he came, I was frightened and fell on my face. But he said to me, “Understand, O son of man, that the vision is for the time of the end.”

I will tell you honestly that interpreting apocalyptic lessons is very difficult. This is a prime example. Rather than see it as a riddle to solve – we will never solve it ourselves – we need to ask “what is the eternal lesson God is teaching?” We know that Daniel was given the gift to interpret dreams and visions, but in this episode the angel Gabriel is called to explain it to Daniel who doesn’t understand. If Daniel didn’t understand, we have no chance. We need to ask God to help us see what meaning is assigned for us in this lesson, rather than attempting to discover who or what in human history is represented by these fantastic images.

Loving Lord, You want us to be part of everything You are doing, but Your wisdom and power is too great for us to comprehend in human terms. Help us to accept that which we can understand rather than coveting to know more than we are able. Amen.

Our scripture today is Daniel 5:5 (MEV).

Immediately fingers of a man’s hand appeared and wrote opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace. And the king saw the back of the hand that wrote.

God uses the Exile to teach Israel, but also the nation that had enslaved them. In this verse we “read the writing on the wall” along with them. The king and his court were shocked and frightened by the appearance of a hand writing a message and everyone present saw it. No one but Daniel could interpret the meaning, and it spells disaster for Babylon. The king and his court are unrepentant even in the face of the message. That very night they are overrun by the Persian army and the king meets his death. God is slow to anger but there will be consequences for those who dishonor Him and His children.

Gracious God, we are sorry for the times we fail to love one another and follow Your commandments. Forgive us and bless us to go where You send us to share the Good News. Amen.

Our scripture today is Daniel 3:25 (MEV).

He answered, “Look! I see four men unbound and walking in the midst of the fire, and they are unharmed. And the form of the fourth is like the Son of God!””

In Daniel 3 we read of a king full of false pride who commands his people to bow down to a golden image. Three brave Israelites refuse to worship this idol, or anything other than their God. The penalty for this is to be cast into the fiery furnace. Suddenly the king and his advisors see these men walking around unharmed and there is a fourth figure that the king declares “is like the Son of God!” We should not be surprised that an unbeliever recognizes the Lord, scripture is filled with stories of God revealing Himself to everyone. A scholarly side note – the phrase “walking around” in this verse uses the same word in Hebrew as Genesis 3:8: “Then they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day.” People would recognize this as more than just “walking around”, but the very presence of the living God.

Heavenly Father, we are amazed at the ways You make Yourself known to us and the care You provide. Help us to recognize Your presence always and everywhere and share the love You give with the world. Amen.

Our scripture today is Daniel 2:1 (MEV).

And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams, and his spirit was troubled and his sleep left him.

Remember the verse from chapter 1 that said “And Daniel had understanding in all kinds of visions and dreams.” God had provided Daniel with the gift that would be necessary to satisfy the king’s demand for an interpretation. This reminds us of Joseph interpreting Pharoah’s dream in Exodus. Even in dire circumstances God has made a way for His people when they follow in faith. We all have different gifts to be used for the good of all God’s children.

Loving Lord, we are so grateful for all Your gifts to us. Help us to see the needs of the world we can help meet through sharing the Gospel and Your love. Amen.

Our scripture today is Daniel 1:17 (MEV).

As for these four youths, God gave them knowledge and skill in every branch of learning and wisdom. And Daniel had understanding in all kinds of visions and dreams.

The book of Daniel is part of a unique group of literature that is termed apocalyptic. That mouthful loosely translated means end times. In Daniel we are given a glimpse of the future that God has in store for His children. There are other lessons to be learned here however. We see the stark contrast between the ways of the world and the ways of the Lord. Israel is given a chance to see what it is like in the pagan world. They also see that their faith while in terrible circumstances would later restore them to the Promised Land and their relationship with God.

Heavenly Father, the lessons You have for us are not always easy, but we know they are needed to break the grip of sin on our lives. Strengthen us in faith and help us to see our place in Your creation, caring for all Your gifts in love. Amen.