Have you ever watched a storm come toward you? You West Texas girls can give a resounding "YES!" It can be an awesome experience. And then there are the storms that hit and you had no warning. Ezekiel saw it coming ... but he was not sure about it. So he watched ... and became more and more intriqued. I love the description in verse 4 ..."an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light." I love the look of the clouds after one of Houston's dramatic rain storms. The gray clouds, billowing, full ... but surrounded by the ring of intense brightness as the sun breaks out behind the clouds. And it looks as if the cloud is ringed by fire. From Ezekiel's experience, we learn that it was God's presence that gave off the incredible light he saw. I can hear Jesus saying, "I am the light of the world." Our sun is the physical light of our world ... and you cannot look directly on it - its brightness and power is so intense. But - that is our sun - and our life depends on it. Well ... these verses in Ezekiel give us glimpse into a spiritual world - and the Son is its light. His brightness and power is so intense - and our life depends on Him! I must ask myself (and you), how do I look for the presence of God when the storms hit? Is God where I take shelter? Is some sort of storm ripping through your life right now? May we see the presence of God there!
Another thing that impresses me in these few verses (4, 5, and 24) is the reality of the spiritual realm. If we are not careful, we can think inside ourselves that this world, the things we know, is really all there is! How foolish ... the spiritual realm is all around us. So today ... know this for certain: storm or time of peace, you are not alone. We are surrounded and supported and strengthened by the Kingdom that is not of this world. That excites me!
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