Ezekiel 11:19 (NRSVue) - I will give them one heart and put a new spirit within them; I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh,
In this chapter, God shares his judgement of evil councilors with the prophet.
God then pronounces that He will restore His people.
This will be a complete restoration.
The people will have a new spirit.
They will also have new hearts.
These new hearts will be capable of gentleness and compassion.
Paul, in his second letter to Timothy, opens with words of encouragement.
Paul reminds Timothy of the new spirit and the new heart that God promised.
2 Timothy 1:7 (NRSVue) - for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.
In our modern world, many have rejected both the spirit and the heart.
The world relies on false wisdom.
It teaches that success equates with material wealth.
It teaches that we should look out only for ourselves.
It teaches that kindness and gentleness are signs of weakness.
Despite the many who have fallen prey to this false wisdom, these things are far from true.
When we are down, God extends His love.
When we feel weak, God reminds us to rely on His strength.
When we feel we have utterly failed, God offers His renewal.
In accepting these gifts, we receive our new spirit and our new heart.
We learn that success equates with loving God and our neighbor.
We learn to care more for others than we care for ourselves.
We also learn that gentleness and compassion arise out of inner strength.
The world will go on believing what it will.
And in doing so, it will allow others to tire and fall.
But blessed with a new heart and new spirit, we can lighten the loads of the fallen.
We can share with them what God has so generously shared with us.
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com on Friday, July 12, 2024.
I will be back here on Friday, July 19, 2024
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