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Repentance and Love
Richard WaialealeDeuteronomy 30:2-5 (NIV)
2 ...and when you and your children return to the Lord your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today,
3 then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you and gather you again from all the nations where he scattered you.
4 Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the Lord your God will gather you and bring you back.
In response to Israel’s repentance, God Himself intervenes, and with tender compassion... He gathers the nation and bring her back to her land. He will restore Israel’s fortunes, this seems to be the theme frequent throughout the Bible. I remember in one of NH foundational scriptures: Jeremiah 29:12-14 (NIV)
12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.
13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
14 I will be found by you," declares the Lord, "and will bring you back from captivity...
Beautiful Scriptures that means so much to me because of how much I need forgiveness. What can I say except to dig deep in my heart and repent and love.
How important is it for me to repent everyday? It is a gift, an opportunity that I get to pray for forgiveness, and I get love Him and those around me. But it has to come from deep in my heart and soul. That’s what makes repentance meaningful - is when I know with all my heart, I get to do this.
Lord my prayer is simply to ask for Your forgive for me and help me to forgive daily and to love those in this world. Amen.
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