[Ohio-Communities-of-Faith] DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR TUESDAY AUGUST 30

[Donnie Parrett]

DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR TUESDAY AUGUST 30

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

We must believe that the best that we can do cannot measure up to God's
perfection, and the worst that we can do is not beyond the reach of His
mercy and grace to forgive.

___

DAILY DEVOTION

Your Abilities Are God's Map for Your Life 

 "May He equip you with all you need for doing His will. May He produce in
you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to
Him."
Hebrews 13:21 (NLT)

Once upon a time, some animals wanted to start a school. They decided the
courses would include running, climbing, swimming, and flying. Then they
decided that all of the animals should take all of the courses.
That's where the problem started. 
The duck was better than his teacher at swimming, but he only made passing
grades in flying and was very poor in running. So they made him drop
swimming and stay after school to practice running. This caused his webbed
feet to be badly worn, and his grade dropped to average in swimming. But
everybody felt less threatened and more comfortable with that-except the
duck.
The rabbit started at the top of his class in running, but because of so
much makeup work in swimming, he caught pneumonia and had to drop out of
school. 
The squirrel showed outstanding ability in climbing, but he was extremely
frustrated in flying class because the teacher insisted that he start from
the ground up rather than the treetop down. He developed charley horses from
overextension, so he only got a "C" in climbing and a "D" in running. 
The eagle was the problem student and was disciplined for being a
nonconformist. For instance, in climbing class he beat all the others to the
top of the tree, but he insisted on flying to get there. Finally, because he
refused to participate in swimming class, he was expelled. 
As you might imagine, the animals' school didn't work. 
Different animals are designed to excel in specific areas, and they can't be
expected to do all the other things. A duck is made to be a duck-not
anything else.
It's the same for people. God has designed each person different from all
the others. When you expect everyone to fit in the same mold, the result is
frustration, discouragement, mediocrity, and failure. 
God made you to be you. He has given you unique abilities, and he wants you
to use them the way he intended. 
Are you wondering what God's will is for your life? Look at your abilities.
They're your road map; they point you in the direction you should go. When
you know what you're good at, then you can know what God wants you to do
with your life. 
The Bible says, "May he equip you with all you need for doing his will. May
he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that
is pleasing to him" (Hebrews 13:21 NLT).
Through your abilities, God has equipped you to do his will. As you use
those abilities, you'll start to see how he produces "every good thing" in
your life.
What unique abilities has God given you?
When have you tried to fit into a mold that didn't match how God made you?
What was the result?
When have you seen God producing good things in you because you were using
the unique abilities he gave you?

___

DAILY BIBLE READING

Ezekiel 1-3 New King James Version
Ezekiel's Vision of God
1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the
fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the River Chebar,
that the heavens were opened and I saw visions[a] of God. 2 On the fifth day
of the month, which was in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin's captivity, 3
the word of the Lord came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi,
in the land of the [b]Chaldeans by the River Chebar; and the hand of the
Lord was upon him there.

4 Then I looked, and behold, a whirlwind was coming out of the north, a
great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around
it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst
of the fire. 5 Also from within it came the likeness of four living
creatures. And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man. 6
Each one had four faces, and each one had four wings. 7 Their [c]legs were
straight, and the soles of their feet were like the soles of calves' feet.
They sparkled like the color of burnished bronze. 8 The hands of a man were
under their wings on their four sides; and each of the four had faces and
wings. 9 Their wings touched one another. The creatures did not turn when
they went, but each one went straight forward.

10 As for the likeness of their faces, each had the face of a man; each of
the four had the face of a lion on the right side, each of the four had the
face of an ox on the left side, and each of the four had the face of an
eagle. 11 Thus were their faces. Their wings stretched upward; two wings of
each one touched one another, and two covered their bodies. 12 And each one
went straight forward; they went wherever the spirit wanted to go, and they
did not turn when they went.

13 As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like
burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches going back and forth
among the living creatures. The fire was bright, and out of the fire went
lightning. 14 And the living creatures ran back and forth, in appearance
like a flash of lightning.

15 Now as I looked at the living creatures, behold, a wheel was on the earth
beside each living creature with its four faces. 16 The appearance of the
wheels and their workings was like the color of beryl, and all four had the
same likeness. The appearance of their workings was, as it were, a wheel in
the middle of a wheel. 17 When they moved, they went toward any one of four
directions; they did not turn aside when they went. 18 As for their rims,
they were so high they were awesome; and their rims were full of eyes, all
around the four of them. 19 When the living creatures went, the wheels went
beside them; and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth,
the wheels were lifted up. 20 Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went,
because there the spirit went; and the wheels were lifted together with
them, for the spirit of the [d]living creatures was in the wheels. 21 When
those went, these went; when those stood, these stood; and when those were
lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up together with them, for
the spirit of the [e]living creatures was in the wheels.

22 The likeness of the [f]firmament above the heads of the [g]living
creatures was like the color of an awesome crystal, stretched out over their
heads. 23 And under the firmament their wings spread out straight, one
toward another. Each one had two which covered one side, and each one had
two which covered the other side of the body. 24 When they went, I heard the
noise of their wings, like the noise of many waters, like the voice of the
Almighty, a tumult like the noise of an army; and when they stood still,
they let down their wings. 25 A voice came from above the firmament that was
over their heads; whenever they stood, they let down their wings.

26 And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in
appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a
likeness with the appearance of a man high above it. 27 Also from the
appearance of His waist and upward I saw, as it were, the color of amber
with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of
His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with
brightness all around. 28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a
rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was
the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord.

Ezekiel Sent to Rebellious Israel
So when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking.

Ezekiel Called to Be a Prophet
2 And He said to me, "Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak to
you." 2 Then the Spirit entered me when He spoke to me, and set me on my
feet; and I heard Him who spoke to me. 3 And He said to me: "Son of man, I
am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has
rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to
this very day. 4 For they are [h]impudent and stubborn children. I am
sending you to them, and you shall say to them, 'Thus says the Lord God.' 5
As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse-for they are a
rebellious house-yet they will know that a prophet has been among them.

6 "And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of their
words, though briers and thorns are with you and you dwell among scorpions;
do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their looks, though they are
a rebellious house. 7 You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or
whether they refuse, for they are rebellious. 8 But you, son of man, hear
what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open
your mouth and eat what I give you."

9 Now when I looked, there was a hand stretched out to me; and behold, a
scroll of a book was in it. 10 Then He spread it before me; and there was
writing on the inside and on the outside, and written on it were
lamentations and mourning and woe.

The Responsibility of the Prophet
3 Moreover He said to me, "Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll,
and go, speak to the house of Israel." 2 So I opened my mouth, and He caused
me to eat that scroll.

3 And He said to me, "Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach
with this scroll that I give you." So I ate, and it was in my mouth like
honey in sweetness.

4 Then He said to me: "Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with
My words to them. 5 For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech
and of hard language, but to the house of Israel, 6 not to many people of
unfamiliar speech and of hard language, whose words you cannot understand.
Surely, had I sent you to them, they would have listened to you. 7 But the
house of Israel will not listen to you, because they will not listen to Me;
for all the house of Israel are [i]impudent and hard-hearted. 8 Behold, I
have made your face strong against their faces, and your forehead strong
against their foreheads. 9 Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have
made your forehead; do not be afraid of them, nor be dismayed at their
looks, though they are a rebellious house."

10 Moreover He said to me: "Son of man, receive into your heart all My words
that I speak to you, and hear with your ears. 11 And go, get to the
captives, to the children of your people, and speak to them and tell them,
'Thus says the Lord God,' whether they hear, or whether they refuse."

12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a great thunderous
voice: "Blessed is the glory of the Lord from His place!" 13 I also heard
the noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and
the noise of the wheels beside them, and a great thunderous noise. 14 So the
Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the
[j]heat of my spirit; but the hand of the Lord was strong upon me. 15 Then I
came to the captives at Tel Abib, who dwelt by the River Chebar; and I sat
where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days.

Ezekiel Is a Watchman
16 Now it came to pass at the end of seven days that the word of the Lord
came to me, saying, 17 "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house
of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them warning from
Me: 18 When I say to the wicked, 'You shall surely die,' and you give him no
warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life,
that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require
at your hand. 19 Yet, if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his
wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you
have delivered your soul.

20 "Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits
iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die; because you
did not give him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness
which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at
your hand. 21 Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man that the righteous
should not sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he took
warning; also you will have delivered your soul."

22 Then the hand of the Lord was upon me there, and He said to me, "Arise,
go out into the plain, and there I shall talk with you."

23 So I arose and went out into the plain, and behold, the glory of the Lord
stood there, like the glory which I saw by the River Chebar; and I fell on
my face. 24 Then the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet, and spoke with
me and said to me: "Go, shut yourself inside your house. 25 And you, O son
of man, surely they will put ropes on you and bind you with them, so that
you cannot go out among them. 26 I will make your tongue cling to the roof
of your mouth, so that you shall be mute and not be [k]one to rebuke them,
for they are a rebellious house. 27 But when I speak with you, I will open
your mouth, and you shall say to them, 'Thus says the Lord God.' He who
hears, let him hear; and he who refuses, let him refuse; for they are a
rebellious house.

Footnotes
Ezekiel 1:1 So with MT, LXX, Vg.; Syr., Tg. a vision
Ezekiel 1:3 Or Babylonians, and so elsewhere in the book
Ezekiel 1:7 Lit. feet
Ezekiel 1:20 Lit. living creature; LXX, Vg. spirit of life; Tg. creatures
Ezekiel 1:21 See note at v. 20
Ezekiel 1:22 Or expanse
Ezekiel 1:22 So with LXX, Tg., Vg.; MT living creature
Ezekiel 2:4 Lit. stiff-faced and hard-hearted sons
Ezekiel 3:7 Lit. strong of forehead
Ezekiel 3:14 Or anger
Ezekiel 3:26 Lit. one who rebukes