Many, many moons ago when I was in high school, I played saxophone in Jazz Band. It was an after-school activity that was not only fun, but I learned so much. I discovered a whole genre of music that I had never really paid attention to and I fell in love with it. It was a completely different style of music to learn to play. We learned about syncopated beats, swing notes, scooping notes, and much more. I remember the director teaching us how to improvise when playing a solo. Which basically means that you make up the music as you go and he did this by simply stating, “If it feels good, do it.”

It was great advice for improvising a solo, but horrible advice for how to live life.

Raising kids in today’s culture has its challenges. There are school systems that will tell you if you feel like a (insert opposite gender) then it must be true. I even watched a video of a mother who was outraged at a school board meeting because the teachers and school psychologist were allowing her child to “transition” behind her back.

Kids are not mature enough to make life altering decisions. Getting them to do household chores at times seems as if you’re asking them to donate an organ. I’m not sure if I’m the only parent who has heard, “none of my friends have to do chores,” but every single one of my kids has said that to me.

My oldest who is twenty-five and teaching at a cosmetology school called me and asked me how 18-, 19-, and 20-year-old kids do not know how to wash a load of towels or clean up after themselves. A smile grew across my face, and I asked her, “Remember when I made you do your own laundry? Remember when I made you help with household chores, and cook a meal? Those are the kids that never had any chores.”

It may sound like I am picking on kids, but in all honesty, society has lost its ever-loving mind. I’m not sure who thought it was a great idea to have drag queens read to small children at story hour at the local libraries, but can you imagine how confusing that would be to a preschooler? I have seen people wear buttons on their shirts, so you know what pronoun to use. As a writer it hurts me deep inside when someone wants to be referred to as they/them. Those are plural pronouns, so unless you have a mouse in your pocket it is not grammatically correct.

If you go to Tik Tok you will find tons of skits/parodies of a “Karen.” Someone who feels that their feelings are more important than anyone else’s feelings. They feel like they always need to speak to the manager, and I unfortunately have been teased by my kids for having a “Karen Haircut” many times.

I have said in blogs before that your feelings and emotions will lie to you all the time. What an easy way for the enemy to get ahold of us and push us away from God. If it feels good, then you have the right to do it. Nobody should tell you what to do or how you should feel! I should say what I want, dress like I want, act like I want, and no one should say anything to me.

The world is a crazy and scary place sometimes.

In Matthew 16:24-26:
Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?

There have been so many times I would want to say something out of anger, that if I could just let my feelings out and unleash my thoughts on that person, that I would feel so much better. But the Holy Spirit clamps his hand on my mouth and tells me that Jesus would turn the other cheek and walk away (the opposite of what society tells us).

John 15:19:
If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.

God has a different standard for Christians. If people can’t see that you are a Christian and not any different than those living in the world, then maybe you need to ask yourself what may need to change. Check your demeanor, your language, the music you listen to, the substances that you put in your body, or what TV shows and movies you watch. No one can make you a Christian, you must want to walk with the Lord. It may not always be easy, but it is worth it.

Every. Single. Day.

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If you have any questions or comments about this blog or would like to know more about Jesus, you can contact Tammy at moppinguptheblessings@gmail.com or on her Facebook group: Mopping up the Blessings.

At our house we have what is called the “One Bite Rule.”  Those are for the nights when kiddos do not think they are going to like what we have for dinner.  You can lick it, nibble it, and smell it……. but you must eventually take a big old bite of it.  Most of the time the kids will end up liking what I made for dinner, and they are surprised because it didn’t look or smell what they were familiar with.

Its like that when we follow Christ.  Sometimes we take little nibbles, smell it or take a few licks of his word, but we just need to take a big old bite of it and then just dive in.  (PSA:  Please do not lick your Bible!) 

I have heard from so many people that they do not want to go to follow Jesus because it’s too hard to follow the rules; they still want to enjoy things of the world that God doesn’t approve of, but if they only knew the true freedom, He gives you.  Being chained to the worldly items is the enemy’s deceit.  He wants you to think you are free to do what you want, till that jail door slams shut, and your time is up.

The peace, love, and freedom that Jesus gives us is unequal to the world.  We say we want it, but do we truly dive in and embrace it?

Do you still check your daily horoscope?  Its harmless right, just for fun?

Still watching shows where there is someone communicating with a dead relative?  Don’t be fooled those “spirit guides” are demons.

Watching movies or TV shows showing witchcraft or wizards?  Think it’s all made up and just for fun?

Deuteronomy 18:10-11

Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.

I encourage you to clean house, spiritually and physically.  Go through your movies, books, DVR, and other things to make sure you are not just nibbling on his word…God wants you to take the whole bite.  

People will say you are taking it too far, or those dreamcatchers are just cute decorations, don’t be such a prude, and it is not a big deal.

To God it is a big deal,

so, you need to choose

 which you are going to take a big bite from:

 God or the world.

The last two weeks have been challenging to say the least.  I have shared with some friends the things I have been through, such as the dishwasher getting clogged, washing machine leaking all over the floor, the air conditioning going out in the house, AC condenser going out on my vehicle, having to buy a new toilet, kids have all been sick… I seemed to be sick all the time, had one kiddo in the emergency room who sent us on to a larger hospital for possible surgery, and major life changing decisions had to be made that honestly were scary to make.

During this time, I have felt so sorry for myself… It was a lot to deal with.  I was sick three times and on three different antibiotics.  I was exhausted, and I fell out of my routine.  I gave up that quiet time with the Lord in the mornings so I could get extra sleep and stopped my personal Bible reading and learning.  I would still pray throughout the day, but it just seemed off, and made me feel off.

I get so frustrated with myself that when times get tough, I try to handle everything on my own ‘till I was literally at the point of exhaustion.  Looking back…why?  I slap my forehead with my hand.  I have been writing for this blog since January 2023 trying to encourage people to lean on the Lord, don’t fight your battles alone and I fall into the enemy’s trap.

I have the following verse posted around the house as a reminder for myself and everyone in our home.

1 Thessaloanians 5:28: Be joyful always; pray continually;

give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

The enemy literally took the Bible verse I had hanging in my house and tried to cheat me out of my blessings because I was too focused on what was going wrong to remember to be joyful always, pray continually and give thanks to God in all circumstances. 

Looking back, I can see how the AC repair man

was able to fix the AC the next day

 and it was covered under warranty.

I was able to fix the dishwasher myself

and only charged myself with a pat on the back.

The washing machine was repaired

with a tiny bit of some sort of magical sealant/adhesive

 that he had and was only charged for the initial diagnostic fee.

I had the money in the bank to cover the part for the car.

My husband was able to fix the plumbing/toilet

 problem without having to pay a plumber to come in.

The hospital my doctor

 is affiliated with has a 24/7 telehealth option

 that I didn’t even have to leave the house.

  The medications were called in to my pharmacy

 who delivered them to my house….for free!

As frustrated as I was to drive to a larger hospital

 in the middle of the night, my child did not need surgery,

that was a totally answered prayer.

And those major life decisions wouldn’t

 have happened fifty years ago because

there would not have been any options.

I am so thankful that Jesus still loves me, in spite of all the times I stumble (which are a lot, physically and spiritually).   I picked myself up out of my waller’n in self-pity, and dropped to my knees asking for forgiveness and thanked him for carrying me through and taking care of everything.

Now I need to put up more copies of that verse around the house because apparently two are not enough to keep me straight. 

We have all heard the story of the woman at the well.  A Samaritan woman was at the well minding her own business gathering water.  Jesus approached her and asked her for a drink.  She scoffed back about how a Jewish man could ask a Samaritan woman for a drink because at the time Jewish people would not associate with Samaritans, but Jesus didn’t care about what the culture dictated, he cared about her as a person.

She went back to her town and spread the word about the Messiah and what he told her, and they asked him to stay, and he did for two more days sharing his message with others and during that time many more became believers.  It’s amazing how a chance encounter during her daily chores not only changed her life but the life of so many people in her town.

It makes me think of how our culture affects the way we talk to people about Jesus.  Drug and alcohol addicts are treated like modern day lepers who are pushed to the outside of the city away from society, so we do not have to see them.

When Russia invaded the Ukraine thousands of people fled the country and became refugees looking for a safe place for their families to live.  They were welcomed with open arms into several countries.  85% of Ukrainians are Christian, they look familiar and have familiar customs, so it was easy to welcome them.  In 2022, over 40,000 refugees fled Pakistan but were not welcomed with open arms.  Many Americans were upset about them being located in their communities because they looked different, dressed different, and had different customs.

The kids and I love to drink smoothies.

We blend up frozen berries with almond milk or yogurt and honey.  Doesn’t matter if there is a blizzard outside or it’s twenty below zero, we will still be in the kitchen blending up the sweet goodness of a smoothie.  My favorite smoothie is what I call my protein coffee, which is iced coffee blended with chocolate protein powder and some sugar-free mocha coffee creamer.  I even have an iced coffee maker at the camper and a small rechargeable blender, so we don’t have to miss out on smoothies when we are away from home camping (or as my husband calls it… glamping).

The reason everyone loves a smoothie is because it is sweet and tastes good.  No one ever says I want an onion smoothie please.  We don’t puree frozen onions with milk and honey and sip it through a straw and say, “Oooohhh, that is so good!”  Yuck! The onion is bitter and infects everything around it with its overbearing bitterness and takes away the sweetness. 

Hebrews 12:15

See to it that no one falls short

of the grace of God

 and that no bitter root

grows up to cause trouble and defile many.

In life we cannot let the onions hang out in our smoothies. If you see them sneaking in you need to quickly remove them before they take hold and ultimately ruin your sweet drink.

We need to remember that life is not always fair, but bitterness is a choice, and we are the ones who choose to be bitter about a situation.  We always have the option to pray about it, ask God to take away the pain and bitterness and then make the choice to move on and not stew about it.  Don’t give that person who wronged you rent inside your head.  You may be losing sleep over what happened, but I guarantee they are not, and you are only hurting yourself. 

Not only will you be miserable, but it will eventually start leaking from your heart into your words and actions and will ultimately ruin relationships and make you and those around you miserable.

Be diligent, watch out for those onions and don’t let them hijack your smoothies!  Make the choice to choose the sweet life over the bitter life.

When I was in middle school, my younger brother was still in elementary school and he played on the youth league basketball team.  Much like the leagues today they would travel to the other surrounding small towns and play against their teams, and they would travel to our town to play also.

One time the parents were called about a local town having a tournament that his team was in and the tip off time was 11:00am on Sunday.  The coach spoke to the parents about this, and they were all in agreement that they would all be in church (they all attended different churches) and would not be able to make the game at that time.  The youth league hosting tried to coerce the parents into having the kids play at that time by telling them that they would forfeit the game and the parents responded with a consolidated response of …  “OK”.  They never argued but stood their ground that this was not going to persuade them to skip church.

At the time, I was really puzzled by the idea of missing this basketball tournament because of it conflicting with church because we went to church every Sunday.  I didn’t think it was a big deal to miss one Sunday and that all the parents were making a really big deal out of nothing.  Just skip one Sunday, no big deal, and let the kids play basketball.

Looking back on that moment I realize that my parents, along with all the other parents, were right.  Skipping church for a basketball game was a ridiculous request and they did the right thing by standing their ground and forfeiting the game if need be.  Luckily the people running the tournament changed their mind and rescheduled the game so the kids could participate.

Another time while in the opening of church, they asked for announcements and a woman stood up and announced that youth group would not be held that day because unfortunately the Sabbath isn’t holy anymore and the kids had sports and activities on that day.  I understood that as the Sabbath is holy unless there are sports for the kids that day.  Looking back, I can’t believe the nerve it took to say that during church.

I am picking on sports in these examples, but I think this applies to almost everything that we put before Jesus.  The first commandment in Exodus 20:3 states:

You Shall Have no other gods before me.

As a kid I always thought that meant worshiping idols, or mythological gods but as an adult I have realized that can mean almost anything:  sports, movies, family time, catching up on sleep, your car, career, even another person.

Of course, things happen, and people do get sick and have to miss church but just remember the next time you are tempted to skip church that the enemy is using “stuff” to lure you away; don’t let him win.  We need to have a backbone and stand up to pressure from society and stand our ground and not “skip” church services that are important to us and our families because once we start caving in to the pressures, it gets harder and harder to stand our ground.

I was listening to the radio this week and heard the song, “Nobody” being sung by Matthew West.  I have heard this song many times before, and even heard him sing it in concert, but it hit differently today.   The words really reached out and grabbed my attention.  I have posted the first part of the song below for you to see.

“Nobody”
(originally by Casting Crowns)

Well, why You ever chose me
Has always been a mystery
See, all my life, I’ve been told I belong
At the end of the line
With all the other Not-Quites
And all the Never-Get-It-Rights
But it turns out they’re the ones You were looking for
All this time

‘Cause I’m just a nobody trying to tell everybody
All about Somebody who saved my soul
And ever since You rescued me
You gave my heart a song to sing
I’m just living for the world to see nobody but Jesus
I’m living for the world to see nobody but Jesus

Well, Moses had stage fright (Yeah)
And David brought a rock to a sword fight
You picked twelve outsiders nobody would’ve chosen
And You changed the world
Well, the moral of the story is
Everybody’s got a purpose
So when I hear that devil start talking to me, saying
“Who do you think you are?” I say
I’m just a nobody trying to tell everybody
All about Somebody who saved my soul
Well, ever since You rescued me
You gave my heart a song to sing
I’m just living for the world to see nobody but Jesus
I’m living for the world to see nobody but Jesus

In school, I was never quite an “A” student.

Never the best musician.

Never the Homecoming Queen.

Never the best mom.

Never the best at anything.

Never quite had it all together.

Then I began to wonder…

When God chose Moses, why would he choose him if he had stage fright?

Why would he choose a teenager with a slingshot to defeat a giant?

Why would he choose twelve men who were outsiders to be his disciples?

Would it have been different if he chose a king from another land to confront Pharaoh? Someone who had a lot of resources at their disposal and could make Pharaoh’s life miserable?

If he sent another giant to defeat Goliath, would it have displayed God showing up to the fight?

When Jesus chose his disciples, he did not choose the perfect ones, but rather men who were common fishermen or even an outcast tax collector who was despised by just about everyone.

Then, I began to realize that God did not call them for their skills, but rather they were called because of their obedience.  Whatever they lacked, God made it up!

In John 14:21:

Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves

me will obey my teaching. 

My Father will Love them,

and we will come to them

and make our home with them.”

James 1:22:

Do not merely listen to the word,

and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says.

No, we are not perfect.  Couldn’t be even if we tried, but we can be obedient.  That is all he wants; he will take care of the rest.

My prayer for today:

Heavenly Father,

I pray today for a heart of obedience.  To understand your word and to be a loyal and faithful servant. I pray that when faced with the obstacles in life that I remember your truth and stand firmly on your word even though the world may be against me. 

Even though I may be small and seem insignificant in this world, I know that my creator does not make mistakes and has a purpose and plan for my life as he does everyones life.  I pray that everyone reading this will draw closer to you and live a life of obedience so that they too will know your grace, mercy, and purpose for their lives in Christ Jesus.

In Jesus name I pray,

Amen

Sometimes answered prayers can lead to a whole new situation that you need to pray about.  I have prayed for months for a way to work from home and be able to help support our family and the opportunity literally came knocking at my door……well, a phone call to be honest.

After being hired and working for the first two weeks, I struggled a lot.  It has been over thirteen years since I have been in the work force, and it was quite an adjustment.  Apparently, the world does not revolve around me and the office and workforce has continued to evolve and morph into a workplace where paper is dead and everything is electronic.  Nevertheless, I still show up with my spiral bound paper planner and fancy pens.

The first thing I struggled with was time management, luckily my husband and kids have stepped in and been a tremendous help with responsibilities around the house.  I can really get use to his cooking (hint, hint).

The second struggle I had was that I was so tired that I have neglected my personal Bible time and prayer with the Lord.  I found myself apologizing to the Lord on a daily basis.  I was exhausted at night and fell asleep early and got up just in time to start the morning routine for me and the kids.  So, over the weekend I had a talk with myself and realized that just apologizing the Lord wasn’t going to fix my problem.  I had two choices.

1.  I could get up earlier and start my day the way I use to.
2. I could find some time during the day for the special time.  No one said it had to be the first thing done in the morning.  (Even though I prefer to start my day that way)

So, I began to take a hard look at my day and realized that I had a block of time mid-day that I could utilize for my time.  I’m a creature of habit and once I have a routine, I like to stick with it, but it wasn’t working out for me anymore.  So, the new time was noontime, at lunch.

My third struggle was with this opportunity I couldn’t make it to church on Wednesday evenings.  I contemplated not working and making that time up on Saturday mornings, and I considered to continue the regular schedule and miss services but continue to listen to them later that night while getting ready for bed.  I was lost.

 I was whining about my dilemma one day and I was reminded by my husband that he had not been able to make it to mid-week services for years due to his work schedule and it made me stop and think, what does the Bible say about working?

In 1 Timothy 5:8

Anyone who does not provide

for their relatives,

and especially for their own household,

has denied the faith and

is worse than an unbeliever.

What good would our world be if all the nurses would not work on Sundays and Wednesdays?  Our local police were all in a pew on Sunday mornings, our highways would be raceways or worse!  Your local grocery store shelves would be empty on Monday mornings if all the truckers decided not to work on Sundays and be there bright and early to deliver to your coffee and doughnuts to the supermarket on Monday mornings.

Thankfully today most church’s livestream their services on YouTube or Facebook so they can be watched after work or the next time they have a break or a day off. 

Even if you are not able to attend every time the doors are open remember that you still need to make time to spend with the Lord and take advantage of technology to stay in touch.

As for me, I am still praying about my situation and listening to see if I am being selfish by not working and going to mid-week services and missing work opportunities or if I am being selfish and worrying more about providing a paycheck and not enough about being present with my family at church.   

To be continued……

Earlier this month, I was driving to church on a Wednesday evening.  This wasn’t just any regular night, there was constant crying, terrible tantrums being thrown, and people who were feeling sorry for themselves.  Does this sound like a toddler?  Or a preteen?  Nope, just me sitting in the driver’s seat of my car.

 I had just left the house where we had gobbled down our dinner and threw the dirty plates into the sink.   I had worked that afternoon, so I was rushed to get dinner on the table and had to argue with the kids to stop what they were doing and come downstairs and hurry up and eat.

We had an early day the next day, so clothes needed to be laid out before we left and lunches had to be packed, but that too was not going to happen.  I knew when I got back home that I was going to have to do all that after everyone was in bed.  The kids could sense the tension and they were fussy, cranky, and irritable… not a pretty sight on tween girls.  At this point in the car the kids were fighting, and I thought to myself, why do I do this?  It makes my life so much harder!  I even said out loud that I didn’t think that it was worth all the time and effort that was required to go to church on Wednesday night.   I was exhausted before we even got there.

I poured back over the day and grumbled how no one helped with dinner, laying out clothes, or packing lunches.  In my mind I felt I was explaining to the kids how they caused the chaos by not helping me when I asked for help and arguing constantly just made life harder.  They enjoy going to their groups on Wednesday nights, but I was frustrated and was blaming their lack of help with the chaos that ensued.

I self-imposed a time out on myself and pouted the whole time I drove to church. I quietly pondered on everything that had happened and just felt sorry for myself.  We made it to church with a few minutes to spare and I walked in with a smile on my face and greeted everyone I walked by.  No one knew the near apocalyptic chaos that had just ensued in my house and car just to drive to church (I really should have won an Academy Award for that performance). After a few minutes with my crew in my pew, we were praising and worshiping.  I was raising my hands and singing to the Lord, when felt the Lord ask, “Why are you here?”

I was a little confused because this is what I was supposed to do and where I was supposed to be, but then he said, “Your worship is tainted by the attitude you had in the car on the way here.” 

Wait……what?

But…I had so much to do! 

Lord, it is not my fault!

It’s not fair…I should be able to whine about it, I’m really tired.

Well… Maybe it was all my fault.

Uggg…

Maybe I didn’t put the right things as a priority in my day and then expected everyone around me to jump in and make those things happen.

Talk about a kick in the gut!

 I knew he was right, as he always is.  My heart leading up to worship was just as important as being there worshiping.   It is not a requirement or what I’m supposed to be doing, but rather a privilege that is denied to many.   I really did not want to admit that the whole thing was my fault, but it was, and I did admit it.

As I prayed for forgiveness and realized that I was the one setting the bad tone in my house, I decided that I was not going to let the enemy sneak in that way anymore.  I was going to stay vigilant and change my thought process.

1 Peter 5:8

Be alert and of sober mind.

 Your enemy the devil prowls around

 like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

Determined to seal up those cracks and not let the enemy sneak back in, I came up with a plan.

Instead of squeezing in time for church and being stressed out I reverse planned my day and started with church, work, and homeschool.  Those were the three priorities I had on Wednesday.

 I started off asking myself a series of questions.

What time did we need to leave?

 What time did we need to have dinner to be able to eat normally and be able to load the dishwasher before we left?

 What time did school/work/chores need to be done?

I also found ways to make my life simpler which in the long run helped me better manage my time and family.  My focus became clearer…

In everything you do,

 put God first, and he will direct you

and crown your efforts with success, Proverbs 3:6

Remember, we always have time for the things that we make a priority; what could be a bigger priority than taking ourselves and our families to church to learn about Jesus?

A few weeks ago, I woke up and  heard, “Listen like Ezekiel.” 

I thought to myself, “Wow…..it’s not even 6am Lord, my eyes may be open but my  brain is still asleep.”

 My next thought was, “Wait…..wasn’t that the guy with the visions who saw the wheel? What does that have to do with listening?”  So, after a couple cups of iced coffee I decided to do a little research about my man “Zeke.”

Turns out God said a lot to Ezekiel, and Ezekiel listened and proceeded to do what the Lord told him to do without question.  I on the other hand complained immediately about it being too early…..again.

In Ezekiel:

God told him that the Israelites were stubborn but he wasn’t to be afraid of them or what they would say back to him, he just needed to obey.

Then next thing, God handed him a scroll, unrolled it in front of him and he read it…..and then told him to eat it, and Ezekial did.  He even said it tasted sweet like honey.  Ezekiel listened and obeyed.

God then tells him to go speak to the Israelites, even though they won’t listen to him as God and they probably won’t listen to him either, but that’s ok because God tells him he will make “his forehead like the hardest stone, harder than flint.”  At this point I am sure Ezekiel’s wife was happy to hear about God making her husband extra hardheaded.

 Ezekial said the Lord swept him away to where the exiles were living near the Kebar River, he then sat among them for a week trying to wrap his brain around everything that happened.  Once again, I’m sure his wife was listening to what he was saying about his visions and being swept away by the Lord to another town and now his stubbornness (hard-headedness) was not his fault because God made him that way. 

Ezekiel never wavered; the Lord spoke to him and told him that if he was sent to warn a wicked man and he didn’t then he would be held accountable for his blood.  If I was Ezekiel, I would have questioned why I was responsible for someone I didn’t even know, but Ezekiel didn’t, he just listened and obeyed.

The Lord told Ezekiel to shut himself inside his house and be tied with ropes so that he could not go out among the people and his tongue was going to be stuck to the roof of his mouth so he could not speak.  Ezekiel listened and obeyed.

The Lord told him that, “I will open your mouth and you shall speak to those that will listen and let the ones who refuse to listen go about their way.”  Ezekiel listened and obeyed.

(I imagine Ezekiel’s wife coming home and being a bit perplexed about his situation, and he couldn’t even tell her what had happened.)

The Lord told him to take a clay tablet and draw the city of Jerusalem on it and show it being overtaken.  Ezekiel listened and obeyed.

He told Ezekiel to lie on his left side and put the sin of Israel on himself and to bear the sin of Israel, one day for each year, 390 days.  When he was done with that he was to lay on his right side and bear the sin of the house of Judah, 40 days.  He was told to turn toward Jerusalem and prophesy against her and then he will be tied up with ropes so that he cannot turn from one side to the other until you have finished the days of your siege.  Ezekiel listened and obeyed.

God told him to take a sharp sword and to shave his head and his beard, weigh it, and divide it.  (I’m sure his wife had questions when she walked into the tent and seen him shaving his head with a sword.)

A third of it was to be burned with fire inside the city, another third he was to take it all around the city and strike it with a sword, and the last third was to be scattered by the wind.  A few strands were to be put in his garment and a few to be thrown into a fire. Ezekiel didn’t question God, he listened and obeyed. 

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Later in the book the Lord set Ezekiel in the middle of a valley full of bones and he told Ezekiel to prophesy to the dry bones and as he did, they came together and tendons and muscle grew, and skin began to cover them.  Then breath entered them, and they became alive and stood up on their feet, a vast army.  Because Ezekiel listened and obeyed.

These are only a few stories from the book of Ezekiel and as I am studying this book, I encourage you to do the same.  One of the many things I gleaned from this study is that when the Lord speaks to me and tells me to invite someone to church or speak to someone in the store and I feel slightly uncomfortable, or too embarrassed- It’s hard to compare being slightly inconvenienced in Walmart or at a gas station to having my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth and not able to speak or being bound for a year and laying on one side.

But Ezekiel listened and obeyed. 

When the Lord speaks to us do we try to interpret what he is trying to say?  Gather with our friends and share what we heard?  Sit and ponder about it?  Go to social media and share what was said to get everyone’s opinion?

Or do we (I) just listen and obey…..like Ezekiel?

My man Zeke was hardcore!