Right now my Bible read-through group is in Ezekiel. A passage stood out to me near the beginning – Ezekiel 3:1-21. This is during the time of captivity in Babylon, and God is using Ezekiel to speak on His behalf. Here’s what it says:
And he said to me, "Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the house of Israel." So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat. Then he said to me, "Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it." So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth. He then said to me: "Son of man, go now to the house of Israel and speak my words to them. You are not being sent to a people of obscure speech and difficult language, but to the house of Israel- not to many peoples of obscure speech and difficult language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you. But the house of Israel is not willing to listen to you because they are not willing to listen to me, for the whole house of Israel is hardened and obstinate. But I will make you as unyielding and hardened as they are. I will make your forehead like the hardest stone, harder than flint. Do not be afraid of them or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious house." And he said to me, "Son of man, listen carefully and take to heart all the words I speak to you. Go now to your countrymen in exile and speak to them. Say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says,' whether they listen or fail to listen."
Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a loud rumbling sound—May the glory of the Lord be praised in his dwelling place! - the sound of the wings of the living creatures brushing against each other and the sound of the wheels beside them, a loud rumbling sound. The Spirit then lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the Lord upon me. I came to the exiles who lived at Tel Abib near the Kebar River.
And there, where they were living, I sat among them for seven days-overwhelmed.
At the end of seven days the word of the Lord came to me: "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to a wicked man, 'You will surely die,' and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself.
"Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die. Since you did not warn him, he will die for his sin. The righteous things he did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the righteous man not to sin and he does not sin, he will surely live because he took warning, and you will have saved yourself."
God asked Ezekiel to do a difficult task. God knew it would not be easy. For a week Ezekiel was immobile in his feelings. I believe God allowed Ezekiel this time to think of all He had said. Time to get mentally prepared, spiritually prepared- maybe a little pouting and freaking out time- but that time had to come to an end. God then came back and laid it all out. Ezekiel if you don’t do this, you will be held accountable – now get crackin’.
I think there are times God gives us some leeway in doing what He has requested, but many times He asks for immediate action. It doesn’t necessarily mean you will be the bearer of intense news like Ezekiel, it is often the opposite. Recently I felt like I needed to go say hello, give a hug and some kind words to someone at church who I don’t know very well. She started to cry. We parted and I knew God was asking me to go back and pray with her. My response? “No, I don’t want her to cry anymore. No, I lost my chance. I should have done it when I was there…blah, blah, blah”. All lies and excuses. I stood on the side on the church feeling overwhelmed, struggling. Mild in comparison to Ezekiel’s call, I know! But I was experiencing a mild panic attack. I mustered up my courage and went to pray with her. I am so glad. I felt God’s approval and boy it was awesome. And I made a friend!
Like in this case, I want to take more action for God. As one of my favorite songs says:
I'm not ashamed to let you know
I want this light in me to show
I'm not ashamed to speak the name of Jesus Christ.
Gotta love Newsboys!
I want to take a stand. I want to hand that cold soda to Mr. UPS at my front door and say, “God Bless You”, not “Here ya go, stay cool”. I’m not risking being embarrassed – I am risking that person’s soul and being held accountable for him or her.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Give me a boldness for You. Where fear, doubt and embarrassment have taken root – dig it out. Fill me with strength, confidence, and boldness. Give me the words to say, for I am to be your light to the world and a fisher of men. Give me opportunities to tell others about you. Fill me with Your peace.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
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