Overwhelmed...NOT!

"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!- 13 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. 14 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. 15 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." Ezekial 3:12-15

Overwhelmed! This was Ezekial's response to the vision he just experienced. He saw God's awesome glory - the powerful display of His greatness! Some believe the four living beings Ezekial saw in this passage represented God's perfect nature. Read Chapters 1 through 3 to get a perspective of the powerful vision Ezekial experienced. Ezekial experienced something so magnificent, so great, so amazing that it left him OVERWHELMED!

In this vision, God tasked Ezekial to be a messenger to the people of Israel. Israel had rebelled against God. They had become hard-hearted and worshipped idols. Ezekial was to be God's mouthpiece of warning, a watchmen, warning of the impending doom of Israel if they did not repent and turn back to God. Ezekial was OVERWHELMED by grief...knowing His people, God's chosen nation, was facing impending judgement. It wasn't good.

I also imagine that Ezekial was also OVERWHELMED by the spiritual experience of the vision. God's magnificence and glory can not be missed! HE makes HIS awesome power and greatness very clear in Ezekial's vision. No doubt, Ezekial was in awe of God's greatness afterwards as well. The God of the Universe, the Creator, chose to make HIS presence known to Ezekial in such a BIG way. As a result of this vision, Ezekial had no doubt as to what God had called him to do.

Overwhelmed! I've learned a lesson from this passage. You know what it is? No matter how hectic, busy, overburdened, or overworked I am, I am in no way OVERWHELMED! Even if I think I am, I'm not. Worldly strife and stress are not what should be overwhelming to us! God has conquered the world through Jesus Christ. So let's give the worldy things that seem to overwhelm us to Christ. Instead, be overwhelmed by a God so great, so loving, so forgiving, and so glorious that HE'd send HIS ONE AND ONLY SON to die - for us.

In His Love, Cathy