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According to plan…. (devo reflection)

Ezekiel 42:1 Then the man led me northward into the outer court and brought me to the rooms opposite the temple courtyard and opposite the outer wall on the north side.

We are still measuring the temple in this chapter, and it would be easy to brush it off as irrelevant, but I think God’s always speaking to us if we listen. What caught my attention in this chapter was the end of verse 11 when it says “all their exits and entrances were according to plan.”

Ezekiel 42:10 On the south side along the length of the wall of the outer court, adjoining the temple courtyard and opposite the outer wall, were rooms.

It’s not so much the entrances and exits that piqued my interest but the mention of a plan. The Israelites are dealing with generations of sin and idolatry, destruction and exile. I would have a hard time seeing the plan in all of that. But I “see through a glass, darkly” (1 Cor 13:12). My Savior, however, sees the bigger picture. He has a plan to give His people a hope and a future (Jer 29:11). No detail is too trivial for Him. Thank You, Jesus.

Ezekiel 42:11 There was a walk in front of them also, and their appearance was like the chambers which were toward the north; they were as long and as wide as the others, and all their exits and entrances were according to plan.

Lord, Thank You for meeting me here each morning. Thank You for helping me see more of You as I study Your word. Thank You that even when life seems chaotic, You have a plan, down to the tiniest detail. Help me to trust You. Always. Amen.

Ezekiel 42:15 When he had finished measuring what was inside the temple area, he led me out by the east gate and measured the area all around.

Have a blessed day.

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Pondering the lesson…. (devo reflection)

Ezekiel 26:19 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I make you a desolate city, like cities no longer inhabited, and when I bring the ocean depths over you and its vast waters cover you….”
What struck me as I read this chapter this morning was verse 21 and how similar yet utterly different it is from Jeremiah 29:13: “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” When we seek God, truly seek God with all our heart, we will find Him. Always. Yet in this chapter, Tyre who is profiting from Jerusalem’s destruction, will be dealt with by God, to the point that even those intentionally seeking Tyre will not be able to find it.
Ezekiel 26:20a “…then I will bring you down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of long ago….”
Pondering the lesson here: when we seek God—seek to find Him, to know Him—we will find Him. He wants us to know Him. He knows that we can only find true peace and contentment through Him. Yet when we seek to elevate ourselves—profiting from the misfortune of others like Tyre—God will bring us low because He knows that the way of the world will never bring us a full life and bringing us low will lead us back to Him.
Ezekiel 26:20b “…I will make you dwell in the earth below, as in ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, and you will not return or take your place in the land of the living.”
Lord, Thank You for allowing me to hear Your voice each morning. Thank You for the reminder that You are my future, my present, every good thing in my life. Please don’t ever let me lose sight of the need to keep You at my center. Please help me always to seek, to listen, to know Your voice. Amen.
Ezekiel 26:21 “I will bring you to a horrible end and you will be no more. You will be sought, but you will never again be found, declares the Sovereign Lord.”
Have a blessed day.
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Earnestly seek Him…. (devo reflection)

Ezekiel 1:1 In my thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.
Commentary goes into great detail about Ezekiel’s vision in this chapter. And while there is much that is fascinating in Ezekiel’s vision, that’s not what I find most noteworthy about this chapter. Ezekiel wanted to be used in God’s service. He had planned on being a priest for the LORD. Captivity made that impossible. Yet on His 30th birthday, the day he would have begun his temple service, by a river in a faraway land, God shows up.
Ezekiel 1:26 Above the vault over their heads was what looked like a throne of lapis lazuli, and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man.
God knows that Ezekiel has a heart for Him. God knows his 30th birthday marks and important milestone that will never be, God knows Ezekiel’s seeks Him with all his heart—and God. Shows. Up. But this should hardly surprising. Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.” It seems as if the revelation isn’t that God is with us if we seek Him, it’s that we forget that all we have to do is earnestly seek Him to be able to find Him in our lives.
Ezekiel 1:28a Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him…
Lord, You promise to never leave us nor forsake us. You promise that if we seek You wholeheartedly, we will always find You. Forgive us for our forgetfulness on such a crucial point. Help us to develop the daily habit of earnestly seeking You. Help us to see Your presence everywhere in our lives. Amen.
Ezekiel 1:28b …This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
Have a blessed day.
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The power of remembering…. (devo reflection)

Jeremiah 52:31 In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the year Awel-Marduk became king of Babylon, on the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth month, he released Jehoiachin king of Judah and freed him from prison. 
Commentary says that this chapter is essentially a summary of the prophecies of Jeremiah. One might wonder why this was necessary. This was an incredibly difficult, gruelingly destructive time in the history of Jerusalem and Judah. Why remember?
Jeremiah 52:32 He spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat of honor higher than those of the other kings who were with him in Babylon. 
There is power in remembering the small, cumulative steps that led to this destruction. There is power in remembering that God gave so many chances for them to return and repent before this destructive end. There is power in remembering the small kindnesses and blessings even in all the heartbreak and despair, in remembering that God’s goal even here was redemption for His people.
Jeremiah 52:33 So Jehoiachin put aside his prison clothes and for the rest of his life ate regularly at the king’s table. 
Lord, Help me never to forget the power of remembering. Help me never to forget that return and redemption are Your goals for me, for all of us, that relationship is foundationally important. Help me never to forget that even in all the heartbreak and despair, there are kindnesses and blessings. Thank You. Amen.
Jeremiah 52:34 Day by day the king of Babylon gave Jehoiachin a regular allowance as long as he lived, till the day of his death.
Have a blessed day.
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Even in my confusion…. (devo reflection)

Jeremiah 51:24 “Before your eyes I will repay Babylon and all who live in Babylonia for all the wrong they have done in Zion,” declares the Lord.
Lord, I struggle so with the destruction in these chapters. I see You as a God of love and compassion, so this destruction is very hard for me to reconcile.
Jeremiah 51:25a “I am against you, you destroying mountain, you who destroy the whole earth,” declares the Lord….
Lord, I know You are with me every morning as I go through Your word. And perhaps that is the lesson here—that even in the destruction, even in my confusion, You are with me, drawing me closer to You.
Jeremiah 51:25b …“I will stretch out my hand against you, roll you off the cliffs, and make you a burned-out mountain.”
Lord, Mornings like this, I feel I lack the Biblical knowledge to discuss what I am reading, but You know that my heart belongs to You and that every morning I seek You as I read Your word. Thank You for being with me always. Help me to shine Your light, to reflect Your love to others, always. Amen.
Jeremiah 51:26 “No rock will be taken from you for a cornerstone, nor any stone for a foundation, for you will be desolate forever,” declares the Lord.
Have a blessed day.
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Even when I don’t understand…. (devo reflection)

Jeremiah 50:6 “My people have been lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray and caused them to roam on the mountains. They wandered over mountain and hill and forgot their own resting place.”
There is a lot going on in this chapter, but the theme of redemption is strong here. Romans 8:28 was strongly on my mind as I read: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”
Jeremiah 50:7 “Whoever found them devoured them; their enemies said, ‘We are not guilty, for they sinned against the Lord, their verdant pasture, the Lord, the hope of their ancestors.’”
I’m not going to lie, though, it took A LOT of destruction to reach this prophecy for redemption. I struggle with the destruction. And not to justify it, but just to try to reconcile it in my own mind, I do recognize that God took a fully rebellious people and brought them to a space where no guilt, no sin could any longer be found in them. That is miraculous.
Jeremiah 50:20 “In those days, at that time,” declares the Lord, “search will be made for Israel’s guilt, but there will be none, and for the sins of Judah, but none will be found, for I will forgive the remnant I spare.”
Lord, I struggle with destruction, but I recognize that Your thoughts are not my thoughts and Your ways are far beyond anything I can imagine (Isaiah 55:8). I look at the world through human eyes and often miss eternal implications. Help me to trust You, even when I don’t understand. Draw me closer. Amen.
Jeremiah 50:31 “See, I am against you, you arrogant one,” declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty, “for your day has come, the time for you to be punished.”
Have a blessed day.
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Right relationship…. (devo reflection)

Jeremiah 49:4 Why do you boast of your valleys, boast of your valleys so fruitful? Unfaithful Daughter Ammon, you trust in your riches and say, ‘Who will attack me?’
Normally when I read scripture from the Old Testament, I am struck by God’s anger and vengeance. This time is different. I keep seeing, instead, God’s mercy and compassion, His overwhelming desire to bring us back into right relationship with Him. Psalm 51:17 comes to mind, which says: “The sacrifice You desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.”
Jeremiah 49:6 “Yet afterward, I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites,” declares the Lord.
God’s not in the business of making us comfortable, wealthy, powerful, or influential. He is concerned about the state of our hearts and our eternal souls. He understands the world’s pull to self-reliance and self-sufficiency. He knows the eternal dangers and ramifications of that route. He doesn’t want that for us. He wants us to have rich, full lives in Him.
Jeremiah 49:11 “‘Leave your fatherless children; I will keep them alive. Your widows too can depend on me.’ ”
Lord, Thank You that I am able to see Your overwhelming love and compassion for Your people as I read Your scripture. Thank You for loving me too much to allow me to rely on myself. I know “The sacrifice You desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.” Help me. Draw me closer. Amen.
Jeremiah 49:39 “Yet I will restore the fortunes of Elam in days to come,” declares the Lord.
Have a blessed day.
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God values relationship with His people…. (devo reflection)

Jeremiah 48:1 Concerning Moab: This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Woe to Nebo, for it will be ruined. Kiriathaim will be disgraced and captured; the stronghold a will be disgraced and shattered.”
This story of the fate of Moab seems to mirror in many ways the fate of Israel during the book of Jeremiah. They turned their backs on God, trusted in their own deeds and riches. Their hearts and actions moved further from Him until drastic measures were needed to bring them back. (Remember, God values relationship with His people.)
Jeremiah 48:7 Since you trust in your deeds and riches, you too will be taken captive, and Chemosh will go into exile, together with his priests and officials.
Again, God is talking to me in this chapter about pride. This seems an extreme example of when pride turns to self-sufficiency, turns to self-destruction. Those times when I didn’t get what I felt I deserved, leading me to be bitter and resentful but eventually drawing me closer to God, were those times designed to keep me from personal destruction like that experienced in Moab?
Jeremiah 48:8 The destroyer will come against every town, and not a town will escape. The valley will be ruined and the plateau destroyed, because the Lord has spoken.
Lord, Help me always to remember Your words in Isaiah 55:8: “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.” What appears to me as unfairness could be You steering me closer to You to keep me from self-destruction. Thank You for Your love, grace, and mercy. Amen.
Jeremiah 48:47 “Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab in days to come,” declares the Lord. Here ends the judgment on Moab.
Have a blessed day.
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Seeking and finding…. (devo reflection)

Jeremiah 47:6a “‘Alas, sword of the Lord, how long till you rest?…’”
Commentary quotes Clark, who calls “This a most grand prosopopoeia [a figure of speech in which an abstract thing is personified] — a dialogue between the sword of the Lord and the prophet.” Since this was the first time I can remember coming across this literary term, I was definitely intrigued.
Jeremiah 47:6b “…’Return to your sheath; cease and be still.’”
As I did more research, though, I realized I use prosopopoeia a lot. The definition includes speaking to the dead as if they are living or the absent as if they are present. I talk to God, whom I’ve never physically seen, as though He is present (because I truly believe He is) all the time. Sometimes I beg, sometimes yell, sometimes praise (Trust me, I’m working on much more praise. It’s a process.) I call those conversations “faith.” I think it’s neat there is a literary term for it as well.
Jeremiah 47:7a “But how can it rest when the Lord has commanded it…”
Lord, Every morning I come before You to seek You, to see what You would say to my heart. Sometimes, like this morning, I’m a bit surprised at the direction You take me, but I’m thankful that You always draw me closer, always speak to my heart, my soul, my mind. Help me to always seek to know You more. Amen.
Jeremiah 47:7b “…when he has ordered it to attack Ashkelon and the coast?”
Have a blessed day.
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God is the only thing I need…. (devo reflection)

Jeremiah 46:27a “Do not be afraid, Jacob my servant; do not be dismayed, Israel. I will surely save you out of a distant place, your descendants from the land of their exile….”
The Lord deeply loves His people. He wants honest, close relationship with them. He gave the Israelites numerous chances to mend their ways, to return and repent, before He sent them into exile. Their pride knew no bounds and God knew that for them to be able to live the life He had for them, they had to be humbled, their hearts of stone had to be broken to be filled with God’s mercy and compassion.
Jeremiah 46:27b “…Jacob will again have peace and security, and no one will make him afraid.”
I am floored by the parallels to my own life. The times when my pride, my arrogance led me to see things as my right and my due. And God knew the toll it would take, leading me step by step away from Him. So He led me instead into a wilderness so that I could realize He is the only thing I need. And even in the chastisement, He consoled and comforted. He drew me closer.
Jeremiah 46:28a “Do not be afraid, Jacob my servant, for I am with you,” declares the Lord. “Though I completely destroy all the nations among which I scatter you, I will not completely destroy you….”
Lord, I am at a loss for words this morning, humbled by Your love of me. Thank You for not allowing me to have my way, which would lead me further from You. Thank You for the thankfulness and gratefulness that come with a humble and contrite heart. Help me to live in Your grace and shine Your light. Amen.
Jeremiah 46:28b “…I will discipline you but only in due measure; I will not let you go entirely unpunished.”
Have a blessed day.