Day 71 – Unexpected Encounters

Ezekiel 1:4,14
I looked, and I saw a windstorm coming out of the north – an immense cloud with flashing lightening and surrounded by brilliant light… The creatures sped back and forth like flashes of lightening. 

It all happened in an unexpected way and in an unexpected place. As the Augustinian monk sat on the toilet, he had a revelation of the love of God. Martin Luther, the pioneer of the Reformation, realised that God’s love is not earned, but is freely given and can be received by faith in Jesus. This liberating message changed his life and it has changed the world!

 This is not the first time that God has met with people in unexpected ways and places. In exile in Babylon, Ezekiel had a vision by the Kabar River of God: Of creatures, wings, of chariots, of wheels intersecting, of a voice that sounded like rushing waters, of a rainbow, fire, and a throne! 

 God was coming ‘out of the north’. This would have baffled Ezekiel! This was a time when many believed God’s presence was particularly manifest in Jerusalem, hundreds of miles south of Babylon. In this vision, it wasn’t a static throne. It was a throne that moved, as the creatures ‘sped back and forth like flashes of lightening’. This was unexpected! God is not a stationary God, but on the move. God hadn’t abandoned them. By his authority, he was establishing his throne in exile. 

The lockdown has meant we’ve been exiled to our homes. We can quickly adopt fixed expectations of who God is and how he will act. But God is far bigger, more powerful and more loving than we can imagine. Like Luther and Ezekiel, we need a fresh encounter of the Lord. We need reminding that he establishes his throne in our homes and we can meet with him there. 

Prayer — Lord, give me fresh revelation of who you are. I ask to encounter you. I invite you to move in my life and in my home today. Amen.

Tim Bateman
Gas Street Leadership Team