Press the play button to watch the video above or press 'more' to read the transcript of the daily devotion below. Please read Hosea 6: 1-10 (use your own Bible or use the link above to access the in-App Bible).

As Christmas approaches, many of us will be thinking about where we are going to have our Christmas dinner. Some of you may be returning to your parents’ houses for that occasion. Every home has its own unwritten rules, so when you are at your parents’ house, you do things the way that it has always been done there, out of respect and also to keep the peace!

In the first part of today’s reading (vv.1-3), we find an invitation for Israel to return to the Lord to find reconciliation and restoration. Because of Israel’s sin, the Lord would withdraw from her and punish her until in distress she will seek God and beg for His favour. To return is not just going back to the place where God is to be found, but also to return to the ways of a righteous and holy God. In other words, repentance - turning away from sin back to living by God’s rules. If we return to God on our own terms, unwilling to turn from our sinful ways, we will not receive God’s blessings.

However, at this juncture in the narrative of Hosea, Israel was not yet ready to return to God’s way of doing things. Consequently, God had some very harsh words to say to her in the verses that follow (vv.4-10). In judgement, God lists out the “crimes” of Israel which included unfaithfulness and idolatry, the worship of other gods, widespread robbery and murder. The main issue was Israel’s love for God was that it was not ‘steadfast’ (v.6). It was like a disappearing cloud or morning dew.

What about us today? Is there a sense in which we need to return to the Lord? Is our love for Him steadfast and unwavering or have we strayed away from God?

Let us look honestly at our own hearts and if we have strayed away from putting God first, then, let us return to the Lord with true repentance. By the blood of Christ, we will find healing (v.1), revival (v.2) and refreshment (v.3). This is as sure as the sun rises everyday (v.3)