Is life frustrating? Do you find yourself beset with obstacles and setbacks? Then you can identify with the prophet Ezekiel.

At the very moment when Ezekiel was called by God to be a prophet—to speak God’s word to the people of Israel—he was also told by God that no one was going to listen to him. There’s a recipe for frustration! Ezekiel’s journey would take him through “briars and scorpions” [Ezekiel 2:6]—it would be a tough road. But Ezekiel pressed on, preaching God’s Word, even as he was getting no visible results.

Ultimately, Ezekiel’s efforts bore tremendous fruit. He helped to usher in the greatest spiritual revival in Old Testament times. But what is inspiring about his story is the fact that long before he saw any sort of progress, he kept on anyway.

From Ezekiel’s story we can lift up the following themes for our own spiritual journey:

No matter how successfully or unsuccessfully things are going at the moment, keep looking to God, and trusting in God.
Find your encouragement, not in immediate rewards, but in the presence of God with you.
Keep holding to God’s values, doing the right thing, and following God’s leading, no matter how many “briars and scorpions” you are encountering.
Never give up! God is at work in ways beyond what we can see at the moment. Like Ezekiel, we may have tough times in life, but as we put our faith in God and open ourselves to God’s Spirit, we can be a part of the wonderful story of how God will be at work through us.

Sunday’s Scripture Readings:
Mark 4:1–9
Ezekiel 2:1–7, 3:4–11
[instagram url=”https://instagram.com/p/65axlbvDGR/” width=”350″]

About the Author

Dr. David A. Palmer has been the senior pastor at the United Methodist Church of Kent since 1995. He has a B.A. from Wittenberg University, a Master of Divinity from Duke University, and a Doctor of Ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary. A native of Wooster, Ohio, he has served three other churches in east Ohio before coming to Kent. He and his wife, Mavis, have three children.