Ezekiel 37- Reunited

 

Gods plan to restore His people is encouraging and hopeful…they don’t deserve it, but He plans it anyway.  We are just like them in that we are not worthy of His blessings, protection and love, but that is who God is!

Ezekiel 36- Transformation & Renewal

 

What a beautiful picture of transformation from a heart of stone which doesn’t feel or move or even work as it should…to the real thing!  Ready to live, and respond as it was designed.  Lord, I need this renewal once again…my heart feels hard and unfeeling, heavy and lacking joy, cold and dead.  Transform my heart to one filled with love for You, joy for all the blessings and a desire to pursue You.

Ezekiel 35- Revered God

 

5 times in these 15 vs God says to the descendants of Esau, you will know me.  These are not the chosen people of God, but closely related…they knew all the history and all the ways that God had cared for and protected them.  Of anybody on earth, they should also know God.  So it seems like this reverence is what is expected even more from those people than any other, and he reminds them more often.

Lord, you have given me scripture so that I can know you even better than all the people of the Bible, help me to reverence you appropriately!  I love you and want to be wholly devoted to you and surrender to you in everything! 

Ezekiel 34- Protected yet Suffering

 

This passage describes how the leaders of Israel have taken advantage of Gods people and how God will personally rescue them.  But then there is a picture of how they will continue to suffer because of their own actions…yet in it all God still intends to bless them.  What an amazing God we serve!!!

Ezekiel 33- Price of Sin

 

One sin is enough to require punishment, but also living Gods way brings righteousness.

Ezekiel 32- Destruction Demanded

 

A very public destruction is described by God for this nation that has been Israel’s enemy.  There is very little to comfort in this passage if you are at war with God or His people…on the flip side, as Gods chosen son, what a comfort to know that God will stop at nothing to protect me.  Lord, give me the faith to trust that You are at work and have my good in mind at every step of the journey!!!

Ezekiel 31- Powerful Comparison

 

This chapter tells about God warning Pharaoh by comparing how He dealt with Assyria, which was even more powerful than Egypt.  It should have been a reminder that God is more powerful and should not be messed with, but rather surrendered to.

Lord help me to be fully surrendered to You in everything!

Ezekiel 30- Repeat on Repeat

 

The message of Ezekiel is on repeat… God does not want to be misunderstood.  He patently tells all people what they need to hear and why.  I think He is just as patient today with me…I wish I didn’t need the message to be on repeat, but I clearly don’t learn the first time.

Ezekiel 29- Alive not Thriving

 

As God is working through the punishment of His people’s enemies, it is interesting that for Egypt, destruction is not the end.  His plan it to return them to their land but prevent them from thriving and domination of their past.  He cares for His enemies and His people.

Ezekiel 28- Supernatural Evidence

 

Four times in as many verses, God provides rationale for his punishment of these nations.  Throughout the entire book this phrase is repeated- “they will know I am the LoRD”.  This is a God who wants us to know Him…He wants everyone to know Him!  His children, His nation, their enemies, those who hate Him…His desire is that we all know Him and surrender to His Love.

Ezekiel 27- Felled by Pride

 

Tyre as a nation was strong, powerful and literally had everything.  Their strength came from trade and diversity because they had tamed the fierce sea…it finally swallowed them, all their riches and their pride.  All that made them great became their downfall.  We are no different…the things that make us proud pull us away from Jesus only to drive us to destruction.

Lord, help me to pursue You rather than glory, chase humility over pride and Your will over mine!

Ezekiel 26- Personally Involved

 

It is amazing to see that God is so personally invested in the punishment and destruction of this nation that was so opportunistic in considering the downfall of Jerusalem.  It doesn’t seem like such a worthy offense…yet it communicates Gods care for His people…and He is just as jealous for us today!

Ezekiel 25- Discipline to Repentance

 

God is punishing these four nations for participating in the destruction of Israel…and His motive all along is for them to know Him.  Lord, You so clearly desire that we all know You and what a privilege it is, help me to lean into that each day!

Ezekiel 24- Sacrifice Everything

 

God has a claim on everything in our lives and is able to use anything and everything to help us to see and understand who He is.  Tragically, Ezekiel’s wife dies and God uses it as a lesson for all His people…and Ezekiel has no say.  Yet through His suffering, He knows that God is with Him and is using him.  Lord, help me to see You just as clearly and have confidence in You!!!

Ezekiel 23- Idols Destroyed

 

These are getting harder to read as it seems to be a message on repeat…stop worshipping idols, it is only bringing destruction.  They must have needed the warning dozens of times because they were thick headed…or just very slow to be changed.  I am like that at times, needing a thousand corrections before I hear what is actually being said…Lord, strengthen me to listen and follow You without reservation! 

Ezekiel 22- Idol Destruction

 

Ezekiel 21- God Known

 

As any parent understands, God is willing to do anything to ensure His children know Him.

Ezekiel 20- Revealing Punishment

 

There is something about punishment that helps us to see clearly.  The pain of it all, forces us to clear away all the lies and convenient excuses we use to follow our own desires.  It forces us to see reality and our own true condition!  Lord, please let me see these things clearly without the need for discipline!

Ezekiel 19- Expectation Disruption

 

We don’t usually expect our story to turn to a tragedy, we are looking for success and victory.  But unfortunately, we are not the authors of our story…instead we are called to trust the Author and have confidence in His promises.  Lord help me to trust You even when things are not going the way I expect.

Ezekiel 18- Personally Responsible

 

God holds each person accountable for their own actions…what a blessing as that is hard enough for me to control…and even then, if I am not surrendered, I often fail to effectively control myself.  Thankfully Gods grace extends to each person and we can accept His grace if we surrender to His will.

Ezekiel 17- Impossible Completed

 

God specializes in the impossible and accomplishes His will against all odds.  He is not constrained by normal circumstances or outcomes, but by His will achieves His desired result.  God, help me to see Your path and walk in it willingly!

Ezekiel 16- Blessings Worshipped

 

This same thing is one of the most insidious manners in which Christian’s sin.  We take the blessings of God and credit them to our abilities and turn it into an idol…the idol takes over and we can reject God in search of more glory, more honor, more pleasure, more fame…

God allow my heart to be soft to you in humility and credit You wholly with all that you have blessed me.  Please strengthen my resolve to point to You in every victory and every blessing!

Ezekiel 15- Called to Faithfulness

 

God calls us to be faithful as we accomplish the work He called us to.  He wants us to understand that He alone is God and the only one worthy of molding our will toward.  Lord, help me to be malleable as I endeavor to be surrendered to You!

Ezekiel 14- Choosing Temptation

 

What an amazing description of how we knowingly submit ourselves to temptation when we are not walking by the Spirit.  If we are thinking of how we may flirt with the desires of our flesh, our fall is inevitable and fully rests on our shoulders.

Lord help me to flee from getting close to the line and run into your arms!