Daily Reading: Hosea Chapter 9 thru Chapter 12

Key Verses: Hosea 11:7-9

Have you ever seen a parent struggle with how to discipline a disobedient child in love?  Knowing that they deserve punishment but longing to bless them creates a difficult and emotional situation.  We get a glimpse into the heart of God and see His divine mercy at work.  It would be a much easier thing for God to execute His justice if He did not love us so.  Mercy is the counterweight that balances the scale of justice.  God so loved us that He executed His justice on His only begotten Son in our place.  Getting a glimpse into God's heart should change ours.  The songwriter must have read a passage such as this when they wrote, "Oh, how I love Jesus, because He first loved me."  Let love rule in your heart and embrace the change that love brings.