Undeserved compassion and grace…. (devo reflection)

Ezekiel 35:11 “…therefore as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I will treat you in accordance with the anger and jealousy you showed in your hatred of them and I will make myself known among them when I judge you.”

My rule of thumb for quite some time has been that if I wouldn’t say something to a person’s face, I should not say it behind that person’s back. I’m sad to say I’ve slipped on that rule of late, and I definitely need to get back to towing that line.

Ezekiel 35:12 “Then you will know that I the Lord have heard all the contemptible things you have said against the mountains of Israel. You said, “They have been laid waste and have been given over to us to devour.”

That rule has more to do with the state of my heart than the fear of God’s judgement. If I say things out loud in anger, that allows those things space in my heart and mind. Those weeds growing unchecked in my soul can do incredible damage to my faith. Besides, I know that we all have more going on than meets the eye. I know that my unkind words are my anger at their behavior, which doesn’t account for whatever they have going on. Much better to give it to God—the entire situation, person and all—than to plant those negative thoughts in my soul.

Ezekiel 35:13-14 You boasted against me and spoke against me without restraint, and I heard it. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: While the whole earth rejoices, I will make you desolate.

Lord, Thank You for the reminder that I need to do a better job of extending grace and policing my thoughts. Help me to give others the same level of grace and compassion that You lavish so undeservedly on me. Amen.

Ezekiel 35:15 Because you rejoiced when the inheritance of Israel became desolate, that is how I will treat you. You will be desolate, Mount Seir, you and all of Edom. Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”

Have a blessed day.