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Captivity?
Ezekiel 1:1-3 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the River Chebar, that the heavens were opened and I saw Visions of God… The fifth year of King Jehoiachin's captivity… The word of the Lord came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest… and the hand of the Lord was upon him there.
Ezekiel was in captivity, exile, torn away from home, confined. We are told here that he is 30 years old and that he is a priest. He could have been serving as a priest at this point, going about his duties, but instead was in captivity. This is probably not what he had in mind. He would have been training to become a priest since he was 20, building up momentum and excitement to step into priestly ministry. He now finds himself confined and exiled, sitting by the River Chebar with the other captives. It is here, in his place of isolation that the heavens are opened, he sees visions of God, the word of the Lord comes to him, and the hand of the Lord comes upon him.
We may feel in a place of captivity today. You may feel discouraged, torn away from where you want to be, imprisoned in your circumstances at work, at home, in the family. Maybe your present circumstances aren't what you had in mind. "It is God who works in you, both to will and to do for His good pleasure" Phil 2:13. Know that God is working in you and it is a pleasure for Him to do so. And in these times, visions of God come and we receive revelation of Gods character. His word speaks clearly to us and his hand is upon us.
I recently received and email from family relatives. The husband of the family has been diagnosed with Glaucoma in his eye, Lymphoma cancer, and is going through many chemotherapy treatments, blood tests and bone marrow biopsies. This, as you can imagine, is an incredible trial and is pushing their family to the edge. But, they know the Lord, and the email they wrote was filled with praise and good reports of blessings from God. They proclaimed how wonderful God has been, how real His hand has been with them, how much God is teaching them through it. "God is our Refuge and Strength, a very present Help in time of need." Psalm 46:1. Whatever you are facing today, however great the trail, be open to Gods blessing and press into Him.
Notice also, that God comes to Ezekiel when He is sitting at a river. We can be so busy in our lives, sometimes unavoidably. Between school, work, family, entertainment, checking emails and logging onto facebook, it's a wonder that we find time to really sit and be with the Lord. Just to rest with Him. No agenda, no time limit, not to check off on a list that we had our quiet time with God. But to be with God, just to be with Him.
Psalm 46:10 Be still and know that I am God.
Isaiah 30:15 In Quietness and in confidence shall be your strength.
"Our calendars are filed with appointments, our days and weeks filled with engagements, and our years filled with plans and projects. There is seldom a period in which we do not know what to do, and we move through life in such a distracted way that we do not even take the time and rest to wonder if any of the things we think, say or do are worth thinking, saying or doing. We simply go along with the musts and ought that have been handed on to us and we live with them as if they were authentic translations of the Gospel of our Lord. – Henri Nouwen
Marty Miranda
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