This Very Day

God was very insistent. He spoke to Ezekiel on a particular day: “the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth of the month.” And He was specific that Ezekiel was to write specific words on that specific day. In fact, He was so insistent that He repeated this directive twice, to write “the name of the day, this very day.” This was the day that Babylon had “laid siege to Jerusalem.”

Ezekiel might have wondered why God was so insistent. He might have had distractions. And it might have been inconvenient or wondered why he could not have written these words some other day. But he had learned that he needed to obey when God spoke, even when he did not necessarily understand.

To God, it was not an accident that Babylon acted on that day. For He had a plan and a specific timetable for Babylon, His people, and the world.

We don’t always understand His actions, for we have our own sense of time. We want God to act according to our timetable. We want things to happen in our time and in our way. But He consistently acts according to His timetable.

We need to learn to listen to Him, not just generally but specifically. For the specific situations we face. For the exact moments in our lives, and in the lives of others. And the exact situations in the world.

You can be sure that there are things that will take place in the world according to His timetable today. And you can be sure that He has a word for you and specific things He wants you to do, this very day.