Some “through the bible” thoughts from Hosea 2.
Because God’s people have a tendency to be unfaithful, he plans to plant a hedge around her so she can’t wander. It’d kind of like grounding the kids to discipline them.
“Therefore I will hedge up her way with thorns,
and I will build a wall against her,
so that she cannot find her paths” (Hosea 2:6).
But other times God puts a protective hedge around a person. According to Satan, that’s why Job was so faithful.
“Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land” (Job 1:10).
So I guess the question is, “What kind of hedge surrounds me right now?” Are there thick, plant-like walls around me to keep the world out, or to keep me confined? Because let’s face it, there’s a lot of bad stuff out I should avoid.
In a recent bible study, an author challenged his readers to explore God’s purposes in “unfulfilled aspirations.” In a world that praises productivity and achievement, failure is not an option. But what if God has something completely different in mind? What if being stuck in one place, in a dead end job, without a home, or no longer able to do what you used to do is a place where God needs you to be?
I don’t like the thought of that any more than you do. I would much prefer to have God simply watch my back while I go off and do whatever I want to do.
But that’s not the way it works. God knows me too well and loves me too much to simply let me wander off. My shepherd comes looking for me, keeping me in the sheepfold and keeping predators out for the night.
What hedges of protection has God placed around you? What hedges of confinement has he set in place? Be thankful for both.
Waite for it... 