God spoke to the Prophet Hosea regarding His people, Israel, saying:
Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor (trouble) a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt. And it shall be at that day, saith the Lord, that thou shalt call me Ishi; and shalt call me no more Baali. For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name. (Hosea 2:14-17)
Do you see what God is doing in these verses? As a result of Israel’s sinfulness, God was going to entice, persuade, and lure them--to where? Into the desert! It was right there, in the wilderness, that God would speak tenderly to them and restore their spoiled vineyards and their fruitfulness.
In order for God to speak to you and restore your spiritual productivity during the dry times of life, you need to be planting seeds in your life right now. The "seed" is the Word of God which enables you to know God's voice:
But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. (Matthew 13:23)
Plant the promises of the Word into the fertile soil of your heart and mind consistently and then when the difficult times come the Word will bring forth fruit in your life. He will bring His promises to mind and confirm them as He speaks tenderly to you.
The Valley of Achor--meaning the Valley of Trouble--is where Achan buried forbidden treasure from Jericho in his tent. Achan’s disobedience was the cause of Israel’s defeat in the first battle at Ai (Joshua 7). Achan took the spoil that was reserved for God and kept it for himself. In order to be blessed again, these idolatrous objects had to be purged from their midst.
During your desert trek, you must make a dedicated search for idols--anything in your life that God has ordered you to destroy. It may be the idol of materialism or entertainment. It may be anger, bitterness, or hatred. It may be immoral relationships or addictions. Perhaps you are sacrificing to your career and amassing wealth, putting this ahead of the things of God.
In this passage God also promised to turn the Valley of Achor--the Valley of Trouble--into a valley of hope. So we learn from this that trouble can lead to restoration of lost hope. In the desert valley, you can learn to dream again. You can be restored to usefulness for God. You can receive a fresh revelation of your divine destiny. Your valley of Achor becomes a passageway of hope.
PRAYER:
My FATHER, My God, this year let my life reflect the blessing of the Lord, I shall not be static, I decree PROGRESS, FAVOR, HONOR, AND INFLUENCE are my portion. My life is SALTED, My speech is SALTED, My Home and Business are SALTED in the name of Jesus.