A Heart of Flesh

Lord, I'm reading through Ezekiel right now in devotions. You know that during this past week I was struggling a lot, really over the things that were going on in the lives of people I love. Yesterday, I sat down to struggle and study my daily passage in Ezekiel and what jumped out at me were these following verses:

I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God. --- Ezekiel 11:19-20.

I know this is a much quoted verse within Christianity and Judaism, because its a promise of a time when we will truly love You as You truly love us. But what flashed brightly to me as I read this was that this was referring to the remnant that You would bring back from captivity. The remnant who You would use to rebuild, restore, and restart Jerusalem.

Lord, it seems that every time You want to start something new and refreshing, You begin by selecting the people that You need. Then You go to work on these people. Who do You need? I believe that You look for people who are capable of having an undivided heart. Why did You pick Noah to restart humanity when humankind had become to terrible to watch? Because he was the only one still wholly devoted to You. Why did You decide to start Your Holy nation with our father Abraham? Because he was one who was willing to sacrifice even his only son because of his faith and devotion to You and Your goodness. Why Peter to lead Your new church after Jesus? Was their a man of more intense loyality and devotion than Peter in the entire Scripture? You prepare the way to redemption by calling out people who can live undivided for Your cause, for Your people, and in so doing, for You.

Are the ones You call undivided from the time of the call? Heavens no. Abraham fathers a child with his wife's slave because he doesn't trust You yet with undivided heart. Peter shows his loyalty by slicing off the ear of someone coming for You despite Your repeated declarations that You would have to die. Noah gets raving drunk. These things are all after You have placed Your call upon them.

It seems to me that the giving of an undivided heart, the putting of a new spirit, the removing of the heart of stone, the giving of a heart of flesh are all the processes by which these people are prepared. Yesterday as I read this verse my thoughts immediately turned to the people who are going to make up Exodus Community. I think that right now as the reality of the project sets in, You've begun to raise good thoughts and good questions about what You are doing in many of their minds. I see You divided people, cutting them, criticizing them, to eventually make them undivided.

But I didn't think of me.

Of course, what You've been doing in the past couple of days is this process of making me undivided. Undivided in my love for all the people You've placed in my path of care. I have been broken for several days on the account of the struggle some members of our group have been having. I was supposed to be. I kept wanting out of that hurt, but I wasn't supposed to be out of that hurt. Being undivided means being one. Being one means feeling the same joys and pains. If I am to be one, undivided with the people of my community, I will feel that wonderful pain.

Thank you for working these processes in me, continue to give me a heart of flesh.