Hosea 10:12
“Break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until He comes and showers righteousness on you.”
John the Baptist, who, besides his cousin Jesus, had his own radical no-nonsense style, preached in the wilderness of Judea calling for people to repent of their sins. His bold proclamation, “Prepare ye the way of the Lord” which called on people to examine and open their hearts, was meant to foster a favorable environment for Jesus’ arrival. God used John’s message to prepare the people ahead of time to receive Jesus’ teachings, allowing Him to enter into and operate in their lives. John’s primary message was that people were in need of repentance.
We often speak of “preparing our hearts for the way of the Lord” for the Easter and Christmas seasons so that we can be in the right spirit to fully appreciate the true significance of the holidays—Christ’s birth, death, and resurrection. We are in a totally different season, an “election” season, not a spiritual one as such, but the gravity of our being prepared is no less important. It is said that this particular election is the most critical of our lifetime. Not only must our hearts be prepared to pray for each day leading up to the election, but even more so we must continue to pray after all the polls have closed.
In several books I’ve been reading lately on the subject of repentance, the consistent theme is that, if we expect to offer effective prayers on behalf of our nation, there needs to be a real shake-up in the condition of our hearts first. Our scripture verse today refers to “breaking up your unplowed ground,” the hard ground around our hearts. We can no longer expect God’s blessing just by virtue of the fact that we would describe ourselves as “good” and that our nation is mostly “good.” “If My people, who are called by My name…will turn from their wicked ways…I will restore their land. We are in need of repentance—His people, meaning you and me. For you, dear readers, who have been “tuning in” each day, I trust you are already in a time of preparation. God has so much to teach us on the subject of repentance and we’ll discover more this week.
Dear Lord, God, I have already learned much from You as I prepare for this election season. Prick my heart; reveal anything that stands between You and me that would prevent my hearing from You. I wait with eager anticipation for what You have in store for me and for America. In the name of Jesus, the One who graciously forgives. Amen.
~ painting by John Sloane
