1 “Come, let us return to the Lord;
   for he has torn us, that he may heal us;
   he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.
2 After two days he will revive us;
   on the third day he will raise us up,
   that we may live before him.
3 Let us know; let us press on to know the Lord;
   his going out is sure as the dawn;
he will come to us as the showers,
   the spring rains that water the earth.”

4 What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?
   What shall I do with you, O Judah?
Your love is like a morning cloud,
   like the dew that goes early away.
5 Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets;
   I have slain them by the words of my mouth,
   and my judgment goes forth as the light.
6 For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice,
   the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

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This is a somewhat puzzling passage.  The people have decided to return to the Lord.  They are trusting Him to change His ways, to stop hurting them and instead to heal them—to stop striking them and instead to bind their wounds.  They are trusting Him to make things better.  That’s a good thing—right?

The response they get is the puzzling part.  With what I take as a tinge of sadness, God responds by asking, “What am I going to do with you?”

I’ve heard that response before.  Usually, when someone said that to me, they were expressing some frustration.  They were saying that they had been down that way with me before, that it didn’t end well last time, and that they didn’t have much hope that this time would be different.  “What am I going to do with you?”

I hope that God isn’t saying that to us this Advent.  I hope He isn’t watching us make the same mistakes we’ve made in the past, saying we’ll act better but not really willing to change our hearts.

The good news is that there’s good news.  God doesn’t give up on us, like people may have done in the past.  Because of His mercy, He is always willing to help us choose a better path.

God wants real love from us.  He wants us to love Him sincerely, not with a temporary “I’m going to do better” but with a heart that truly wants more of Him.

This Advent, let’s not just want more from God.  Instead, let’s earnestly strive to want more of God.