Like DEW!
Hosea 14:5 "I will be like the dew to Israel; He will blossom like the lily, And he will take root like the cedars of Lebanon."
• WHAT IS DEW?
• YOU WILL BE A LILY
• GOD WILL TAKE YOUR ROOTS DEEP AND BUILD YOU
• SMELL LIKE CEDARS OF LEBANON
WHAT IS DEW? The above chapter opens with the words ‘return’, okay God was speaking to the people who have strayed away from Him and now He was calling them back to Him and He promised that He would be like the DEW to Israel. Listen! I didn’t just scroll away and go to the next verse, I got stuck. I was asking God, how He would be like DEW for a backslidden group of people?? First I dug into knowing more of DEW, and let me share some interesting facts that I got about it.
Dew is not just those lovely droplets of water that cling on to flowers, dangle from leaves like ‘diamond drops’, that spreads on your car windows, makes your grass moist and leaves you with a chill feeling as you walk on it…..I can go on to say many more gorgeous things of dew but hey friend, there’s more to it. Dew forms a protective barrier on the leaf; transpiration will not occur until the dew evaporates. Dew may help some species survive drought conditions." Some species, especially desert plants, can actually absorb water directly through their leaves. For these species, dew is a direct source of hydration. Wow, every word in the Bible is deep! Now, I got the answer, God is going to be a covering and shield for His people who come to Him, now how does this happen. Listen, I got the answer from the book of Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy 32:2 “Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants. “ The Lord said: Let His words descend like Dew…! Are you listening?
Hey friend, there is some homework you need to do after you return to God from all your ‘wanderings’, you cannot sit lazily and expect God to be like Dew for you, daily reading of God’s word is Dew and a must – without which you are not right with God. Take it from me today, be warned and come back to God to receive the DEW in your life. When the DEW settles on you, then you would be a glossy DIAMOND droplet: valuable, priceless, unique and precious!
B) He will blossom like the lily ……
Just like how ‘dew’ has a lot of meaning attached to it, likewise the word’ Lily’ also has profound truth behind it, let’s explore. Boy! I’m blessed by this scripture!
When God is DEW for the believers, despite their problems, trials and present situations, they would grow tall and flourish like the Lily, which is beautiful and the growth of lily is very quick and speedy. Likewise, new converts would get passionate and grow speedily in Christ. They would not be ‘couch potatoes’ in the churches, coming as guests every Sunday but they would become servers for the Kingdom of God. They will be ministering in Sunday classes, canteens, volunteers and choir. Wow, how lovely would be the Church if we believers grow like this LILY!
Once when I went to visit a pastor at his church on a Saturday, I found a man in his shorts washing the church, a close look at him revealed that he was the pastor himself. I had to wait for full one hour until he finished, alas, such is the case of the church today, people hop in late and rush out fast; however, we need Lilies that would serve the House of God. Also the flowers represent purity, it is God who washes you with His blood and purifies you. Say Amen. No matter what your past is, God is able to make you as ‘PURE AS THE LILY”, say Amen. God was talking to the backslidden Israelites and He was encouraging them to return to Him so that He can be like DEW for them and make them pure as a Lily. Wow! Share this friend with someone who has a low esteem about themselves and tell them it is God who makes them pure as a Lily. Did not God include Rehab the prostitute in His genealogy list? Clap hands for God will you?
C) Cedars of Lebanon…
Hosea 14:5”And he will take root like the cedars of Lebanon….
Now this going to bless you! Normally, the Lilies as fast as they grow, they also fade quickly and they can be plucked easily; however, with God as DEW on them, no one dare pluck them, they will take root deep like that of the cedars of Lebanon. Wow, rare combination, that’s what God does in your life! Hey, this beauty cannot be hidden!
You will be like the gorgeous white Lily above, tall, dainty and exquisite but you will not be unstable and feeble but your roots will be like that of the Cedars. Strong! Anybody listening? The roots of the Cedars are very deep, upto 20 feet and they never stop growing deep, they keep getting deeper and deeper. Say Hallelujah! God would make you like those Cedars that never stop growing...... You can awe people with your growth and success! When the roots grow deep, then you flourish and give fruits. The Bible says that Joseph was fruitful bough, Gen. 49:22, such fruitful people get the inner man stronger and stronger and also their mind gets renewed.
A young boy from the local slums started attending our weekly meetings, he got so moved by the Gospel that he tore all the cinema song books and surrendered his life to Christ. They were idol worshippers and his father would beat him for attending prayer meetings, nothing deterred him though. He started attending our night prayers and would get beaten in the morning for not going home. He would stay back after the night prayer meeting and would help us pack up too whereas the others would be busy drinking tea and chatting. We gave him immersion water baptism, gave him a new name and he also started attending a good church. Story not over, he became the Sunday school teacher of that church, after few years he became the Sunday School Supervisor, my son Joshua who is a pastor now, also studied in his Sunday class. After few years, he came and told me that he was going as a missionary to Varanasi. As I write this portion, it has been 3 years since he left and I spoke to him yesterday over phone (January 4, 2021) he said, “ I have started more than 10 home churches, organized many prayer meetings and I am praying for a church building now. “ I am proud to be his spiritual mother! The Lord said, ‘YOU WILL LIKE THE CEDARS OF LEBANON!’
COVID 19 situation would not have happened if every believer is like a cedar tree, isn’t it? Churches should conduct Bible Study, night prayers, fasting prayers, Intercessory prayers, and concentrate on making such Lilies and Cedars that would adorn the city rather than fruitless, barren trees.
Note: Reading the Bible is the DEW through which we grow, otherwise believers are stunted and eventually they fall away.
D) ….his fragrance like the cedars of Lebanon.
Hey friend, I am not talking about the superb deodorant that would vanish after a while, I am talking about the ‘spiritual smell’ on you that would be like the cedars of Lebanon, you will be an aroma for Christ wherever you go. Are you listening?
Jesus was amazed when a woman opened an alabaster bottle of very expensive perfume and poured it on the head of Jesus; while many around who witnessed this act, found it weird but Jesus said, ‘she has done a beautiful thing to me!’ I am not talking about beauty tips or 1000 ways to look beautiful; you find those everywhere – I am talking about what captivates the attention of the Messiah!!! Jesus said: “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me.” (NIV) (Mark 14:6) Jesus looks at the heart! Yes, His eyes penetrate to see the thoughts behind our every act! While the crowd around missed to see the ‘colossal love’ behind her act of pouring the expensive perfume over His head – Jesus saw that! Amen. This is what is called to smell like the cedars of Lebanon, when she poured that expensive perfume on the head of Jesus, she started smelling like the cedars of Lebanon, wow!
Friend, when you have huge outstanding bills to pay and your neck deep in financial crisis; yet, during this time, when you open your hands and give your tithe offerings to God – Jesus would say, ‘she/he has done a beautiful thing to me and she smells like the cedars of Lebanon.!
When you skip a night party and attend an all-night prayer service – God would say, ‘she/he has done a beautiful thing to me and she smells like the cedars of Lebanon!
When you control the urge to buy the latest mobile and when you help a poor kid pay her fees – Jesus would look at you and say, ‘that’s a beautiful thing you have done and he smells like the cedars of Lebanon.!
When you chauffeur a bunch of poor kids in your car for shopping, Jesus would look at the joy on the face of those poor kids and He would say, ‘you smells like the cedars of Lebanon.! We seldom see such ‘BEAUTIFUL’ acts or smells such cedars these days! We have self-centered people who think about nothing but themselves. Come on, look at the needs before you today!
Around 20 years back, when I was on maternity leave, along with my husband we would leave my infant son and daughter with the maid and go to the local Government hospitals to pray and distribute biscuits for the poor children during weekends and also held prayer meetings for slum children. Today, God has blessed us with Abide School, a free school for the under privileged kids and also Abide Angel Home, a free hostel for the poor kids in Hyderabad.
During a particular season in our life when we did not have regular cooks and workers in the school, yet we had to run the show, I pitched in to cook with fire wood, those were days we were suffering financially too. At the end of the day, my clothes and body would smell of smoke and it was a painful job, but I just couldn’t escape. I worked for nearly two decades in the most reputed and posh corporate companies and the last one being a multinational bank but then I had to go through rough terrain in my life. However, friend, God is not going to be a silent spectator of your troubles, He did bring a remedy (though not immediately) and now we have the BEST workers. Recently my helper working in our home told me few days before Christmas,”madam, I am going to clean the entire house, outside and inside but let me tell you I don’t want any money for it.” Such a darling! You would get such workers and God would put an end to all your misery. Even during this COVID 19 lockdown period, we have teachers who are doing zoom classes for our students, our School is maintained well with workers working for us and I have helpers for me at home too. God is good, get encouraged today friends. both my children are serving the Lord now. God would never forget your efforts! Smell like a Lily and the Cedars of Lebanon today!
