Ezekiel 36:26
"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh."
Ezekiel 11:19
"And I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh.
What image comes to your mind when you read this?
For me it's a compilation of images. One of the images I can see are my closest friends trying every day to remember to break their hearts for what breaks God's. Remembering that to have a heart of stone we are being anyone but Ruth ( thank you christina). Ruth left her father, mother, and homeland to come live with people that she did not know. She is revealing her heart in an uncomfortable foreign way to be a heart of flesh for pelple she did not even know. Why is it that we can't even do this with people we do know?
My whole life I have thought I had a heart of flesh, but God has really challenged me to show me how much more I can grow, and to not only have a heart of flesh with those I know, but with those I do not know as well.
To be real, genuine, and feel in your heart what others feel is an experience you cannot explain. To feel in our hearts the pain and suffering that God felt for us, is something we can' t even imagine.
I truly believe we have been give ONE new heart, and we are becoming like flesh exposing the dirty, shamful, guilty sides of ourselves. Not only can we touch each other with these new hearts, but touch people we don't even know.
Nicole this is just what I needed to hear this morning. I have been praying that all of the impurities of my heart would be cut out. And I have had these pictures of God as a surgeon cutting out thick masses of black infection (my image of sin) and allowing new pink flesh to grow in its place. This is seriously so powerful. Thank you for sharing this with us.
ReplyDeleteI love you
Ash B
Nicole, great blog. I think you might have a career in writing, my friend. The mark of a gifted writer is someone who can convey a deep, sincere message in as few words as possible. You did an exquisite job conveying a profound message in a simple and clear manner. Hats off to you.
ReplyDeleteWow Nicole, thank you so much. This hit straight to the heart. God is working in our hearts and its so exciting! Thank you lady! love Megs
ReplyDeleteThat was amazing! I loved everything about that blog! Wow..I am really challenged by that! Those verses are so powerful too! What a Good God we have to give us a heart of flesh to replace our heart of stone. Our God is so powerful. This really reminds me to be thinking of how I am using my heart of flesh everyday. Thank you so much! I love you Nica!! xoxo
ReplyDelete