Ezekiel 39 - Judgment of Gog and His Allies

LINK: Ezekiel 39

BACKGROUND

The story of the battle continues. God will miraculously intervene in this battle so that His holy name will be "known . . . among my people Israel . . . and the nations" (39:7). The nations aligned against Israel will be annihilated. Then, Gog and his hordes will be properly buried there. Anything not buried will be eaten by carrion-eating birds and beasts. Consequently, the land will be made holy (Number 19:14-16).

God destroyed this invading army to protect His people and to demonstrate His glory among the Gentiles. He said He will "show Himself holy through them in the sight of many nations (39:27). Finally, God will pour out His Spirit on the house of Israel (36:27; 37:14; Joel 2:28). "The ultimate result of the battle with God will be Israel's national repentance and spiritual restoration" (The Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament, p. 1302). 

We do not know when this will be, but I cannot wait!

MEDITATION

Here is a meditation I have of just verse 29a if you want to personalize this chapter:

REFLECTION

Whew! It was chapters like Ezekiel 38 and 39 that made me a little leery of tackling Ezekiel. We do not know the exact location of Magog. We do not know when these things will happen. We do not know a ton of things, but we do know that God is in control, and He wants us all to know that He will show Himself holy in the sight of all nations and that HE is the LORD! That is enough for me to just respond in worship rather than speculation. How about you?

APPLICATION

Do not waste your time in speculation and short-change God on the worship He deserves today!

PRAYER

You are the LORD our God! We worship You because You are 100% holy and 100% mighty and 100% sovereign in and over all people and world events. We humbly acknowledge that You are God and we are not. Teach us to tremble and be in awe of You. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Isaiah 63 & 64 - Judah's Penitent Prayer

LINK: Isaiah 63 & 64  

BACKGROUND

Isaiah 63:1-6 speaks of a day of judgment coming when the blood of the enemies of God's people will stain God's garments as He rides forward to deliver Israel. Edom was a constant enemy of Israel even though they had a common ancestry in Isaac (Genesis 25:23). Bozrah is a city in Edom in southern modern-day Jordan (see Amos 1:11, 12; Obadiah 10, 11; Malachi 1:2-4).

Isaiah 63:7-64:12 is the prayer of the Jewish remnant in Babylon who were hopeless but remembered God's goodness and kindness from times past, especially the Exodus and parting of the Red Sea to save them from the Egyptian pursuers. 

This remnant begged God to remember them in the same way He remembered them in Egypt. They begged for tenderness and compassion and the punishment of their enemies. They implored Him, "make Your name known to your enemies" (64:2). They would acknowledge their sin and lack of prayer (64:5-7). Then, they would wait (64:4) and trust (64:8-12). 

MEDITATION

Here is a more focused meditation on a portion of today's reading from Isaiah 63:7-14. It includes a meditation on God's goodness in your life. It is part of the larger Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius.

REFLECTION (written in 2009)

One of my biggest weaknesses is forgetting to pray and wait. I will often get ahead of God and "make things happen" or get really anxious about things. I have something I am anxious about today. As I read Isaiah 64:7a, "No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you," I thought of the words I read by Thomas Aquinas earlier in the morning:

But if we consider the actual petition, then we do offer something to God when we pray. For the very act of petitioning is an act of subjection; it is an acknowledgment of God's power. And the proof of this is that proud men would prefer to submit to want rather than humble themselves by asking anything of others. Further, the petitioner, by the very fact that he petitions, acknowledges that he whom he petitions has the power to assist him, and is merciful, or just, or provident; it is for this reason that he hopes to be heard. Hence petition or prayer is regarded as an act of the virtue of religion, the object of which is to give honour to God. For we honour God by asking things of Him, and this by so much the more as--whether from our manner of asking or from the nature of what we ask for--we acknowledge Him to be above all things, to be our Creator, our Provider, our Redeemer, etc. (On Prayer and the Contemplative Life, p. 35.)

What I see in this section of Scripture is that Israel was not too proud to beg God. They acknowledged His power in the past, and they hoped He would display that power again. 

It is good to remember that we honor God by our asking. 

2014 Update: Huge growth in this area. I am not so sure I struggle with forgetting to wait anymore. It is so fun to read these old entries and see that God is growing me! I do not even remember what I was anxious about that day.

2023 Update: I don't have a lot of anxiety anymore either. I have learned so much about balance and saying, "No" when God tells me to say it. I'm more comfortable with possibly disappointing people. Growth! Three things have helped me to grow in this area:

Immanuel Journaling - I explained it in the Isaiah 41 post.

Walking

St. Augustine once said, "Solivitur Ambulando" (things are solved by walking). Integrating my body into what is swirling in my mind helps me work through things in prayer to God. (There is brain science to back that up too.)

In the walking, I often stop at a labyrinth at the top of the "hospital hill" less than a mile from my house. This labyrinth was an Eagle Scout Service Project. He designed it to have healing plants along the route. I love it because I go there to walk things out with God and receive His healing. 

I walk in and 

Release the negative emotions, sin, burden, etc.

I walk in a circle when I reach the center and

Receive whatever God wants to say to me.

I walk out and 

Return Resolved to walk in what He told me.  

The Healing Labyrinth - I need to get a picture 
in June when it is in full bloom!

APPLICATION 

How can you honor God by your asking today?

Is it time for a walk? As these days get longer, part of your morning time with God can be walking and processing with the Lord.

PRAYER

Lord, I ask You for that special unspoken request I have today. Amen. 

Psalm 16 - Fullness of Joy

LINK: Psalm 16

BACKGROUND

I am thinking that David wrote this after he became king because he proclaimed that God had made his lot secure and that the boundaries had fallen for him in pleasant places. This is a man who had learned to trust in the Lord through many trials, and now God's promises to him had been fulfilled. 

REFLECTION

In Your presence is fullness of joy 

and pleasures forever.

(16:11) 

This is one of my favorite verses. The only place to have full and meaningful joy and pleasure is in the presence of God. I cannot reiterate that enough. It seems too simple to be true, but it really, really is.

After I posted this, a friend reminded me of this famous C.S. Lewis quote that gets at the heart of this verse:

Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased. (The Weight of Glory)

APPLICATION

Seek Him Bible Book Club members! Seek His face continually!

Since I wrote this post many years ago, I have added a spiritual practice to my life that has brought me, like the verse says, much pleasure and joy in God's Presence.

I resisted this practice for so many years! I remember trying to read a book about it at a retreat center and thought, "This is just not for me!"

Fast forward many years later during my spiritual direction certification training. I was to pick a spiritual practice that I have never tried before. The only one I had never tried was this practice: Centering/Silent Prayer. My objection was that I like talking to God, and I thought it was weird to just sit there in silence before Him and not talk to Him. 

But I was willing to give it a try, and I LOVE this type of prayer so much that I co-lead a group in it two times a week. (Contact me if you want to join in: https://bodyandsoulcompanion.com/contact,

I think my first clue was that I had been practicing Lectio Divina meditation, and I started noticing that I was moving into silence (contemplatio) quite naturally because they were just God moments where a "holy hush" came over me. 

So, I encourage you to try it. Here is a post I wrote about it, and a handout that you can download. 

Silent Prayer: Contemplative Rest in a Busy World

Post

Handout

I pray you have much pleasure and joy as you dwell in His presence today!

PRAYER 

Pray responsively through this Psalm.