I Am Confident...

Yesterday I was spending some time reading in the Old Testament before heading off to work, and since I'm reading straight through I found myself in the books of Hosea and Joel. Joel - a book that not too many think of for great encouragement - actually had some great verses and I had originally written a post about them. But when it came down to it, this verse in Hosea was the real highlight of my quiet time and made the deepest impact on me. I love the wording from the New Living Translation for this verse because it just made it so real and so understandable.

--the LORD God Almighty, the LORD is His name! So now, come back to your God! Act on the principles of love and justice, and always live in confident dependence on your God. (Hosea 12:5-6)

I felt like my hearts desire was finally put into the perfect words - I want to live in confident dependence on the LORD. So often we try to be confident in our own abilities - and a certain amount of confidence is a good thing. God gave us brains and He expects us to use them - at least that's what my parents always told me when I told them I was tired of school! As I've continued to learn the various parts of my job, I have to grow in confidence or I will never advance to the next stage of learning.

However, throughout the whole process of life (in a job, as a student, a spouse, a friend, a parent) while we build confidence, we must also recognize that we are 100% dependent on the LORD for everything. He is the One who has given us our homes, jobs, families, food, health, life, and wisdom. He is the One who knows the number of hairs on our head, who has ordained the number of days we will live, and who sent His Son for our Salvation.

As I read that verse, I sat back in my chair and thanked the LORD for the confident dependence that the Creator of the Universe will not make a mistake when it comes to my life - good or bad, my dependence is resting on Him alone. April is Easter month, and trust me when I say that even though I love a good Cadbury egg as much as the next person, that's not what Easter is all about. I would encourage you to spend some time getting to know the Father who sent his Son to take our place as the final sin offering so that we may have the hope of eternal life with Him in Heaven. Our Father who allows us to experience confident dependence on Him while we are here on earth. It's well worth the "effort".