Dear Trinity Families,
Here is your WELS Devotion
“‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will take a shoot from the very top of a cedar and plant it; I will break off a tender sprig from its topmost shoots and plant it on a high and lofty mountain…Birds of every kind will nest in it; they will find shelter in the shade of its branches . . . I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it.’”
Ezekiel 17:22-24
God Will Never Give Up on You
It’s not a great feeling when people give up on us. Maybe it was the coach who decided you were never going to get it, and so he banished you to the bench. Maybe it was the employer who decided you weren’t fast enough to keep up with the job and fired you after only a few weeks of work. Or perhaps it was the spouse who was no longer willing to be patient with you to make some necessary changes and decided it was time to move on without you.
The believers in Ezekiel’s day had the mistaken impression that God had given up on them. They were languishing in captivity in the far-off land of Babylon, far away from home and country, far away from their house of worship. Yes, they had sinned. And now it seemed to them that God had given up on them and moved on.
Through the prophet Ezekiel, God gave his people a wonderful and much-needed reminder that he would never give up on them. He had promised to save them many times and through many generations, and he intended to keep that promise. In beautiful words, Ezekiel records God’s determination to keep his promise to his people. He let them know that a Savior was coming—one who would take away everyone’s sins and provide refuge for all who seek him.
God will never give up on you either, no matter how unlikely that may seem. God has proven that already by keeping his promise in sending Jesus. The cross of Calvary is God’s guarantee that he will never give up on you. He loves you, has saved you, and will always be with you. Wherever you are, whatever your circumstance, God says to you: “I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it.”
Prayer:
Dear Jesus, thank you for not giving up on me. Thank you for giving yourself in my place and for giving me the gift of heaven. Lead me to trust you and to live as your child. Amen.
God Bless,
Lynn