In Ezekiel chapter sixteen, God likens the children of Israel to a newborn child that was abandoned in a field.

“As for your nativity, on the day you were born your navel cord was not cut, nor were you washed in water to cleanse you; you were not rubbed with salt nor swathed in swaddling cloths. No eye pitied you, to do any of these things for you, to have compassion on you; but you were thrown out into the open field, when you yourself were loathed on the day you were born. And when I passed by you and saw you struggling in your own blood, I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’ Yes, I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’” Ezekiel 16:4-6.

God goes on to tell how he clothed Israel, fed them and lavished many blessings upon her, and in the end, she left Him and threw herself at anyone who would come by.

“Your fame went out among the nations because of your beauty, for it was perfect [because of Me] through My splendor which I had bestowed on you,” says the Lord God. “But you trusted in your own beauty, played the harlot because of your fame, and poured out your harlotry on everyone passing by who would have it.” Ezekiel 16:14-15.

So like the prodigal son is this story of an adulterous woman. God uses these stories to illustrate His actual feelings, the grieving father, the betrayed husband (or wife) waiting only for the return of their loved one.

These are feelings many of us have had. What they convey is that God is no different from the rest of us when it comes to His feelings for you or me.

Remember though, the difference between God and men in His dealings with us is that He has no hidden agenda, no self-serving motive, He is not a control freak, nor does He wish to bend us to do His will.

I say this because the tendency is to project your parents or spouse’s or some authority figure’s attitude onto God, if they were perfect this is good, but it is likely, that was not the case.

If you were in an average family, you probably got a mixed bag of the good and the bad. At the rate families are falling apart today, consider yourself lucky if you did.

God is not a self-centered person, so He can be totally objective when He requires something of you.

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28-29.

You can rest in this verse spoken by Jesus, for He is the same God of whom we speak.

God does have an agenda, but it is not hidden, He has told us plainly everything we need to know to trust Him. The invitation here is to stop struggling with life and let Him guide you through it.

You will find that the things that God has in store for you are suited to your personality, and they are intended to bring you into a life of greater and greater peace as you come to trust Him day by day.

Be warned that this life is not necessarily without trials, but you will be enabled by God to press through the hard times and come out stronger afterward.

Life around us is a constant struggle, see these things, talk to people, you know this is so. Scripture tells us this about the troubled world system we live in.

“We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.” 1 John 5:19.

“But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god [Satan] of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.” 2 Corinthians 4:3-4.

“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12.

“If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.” John 15:18-20.

“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:33.

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27.

The word of God not only tells us the origins of the world’s troubles, but Scripture also tells us how to live in this hostile world, both by instruction and by example as shown below.

“Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, on whom the ends of the ages have come.” 1 Corinthians 10:11.

The quote above tells us of the difficulties of the children of Israel in the wilderness, we can learn from their mistakes, and indeed from all that is written therein.

It seems to be human nature to want to fight our way through a situation, especially when we are out for our own goals, and painful as it gets, our lips are sealed against crying out to God for help.

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!” Luke 13:34.

A mother hen, how self-serving is a mother hen as she gathers her chicks under her wings. Now a mother hen is no genius even in the realm of nature, but her desire is to care for her chicks, this gathering them under her wings is to comfort them and protect them from predators is a warm quiet place of rest.

The infinite Creator of everything compares Himself to this simple creature to show us how much He wants to care for us in every aspect of our lives, and how selfless is that care.

However, it says of Jerusalem that they were not willing. Oh, they knew the call, and ignored it, preferring instead to wander about on their own like lost chicks, defenseless against the hawks and other predators that continually victimized and devoured them.

We too go through life without the rest that is in Christ. We mistake this for freedom, rather than the bondage it really is, enslaved to sin, enslaved to uncertainty, struggling along alone.

“The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms; He will thrust out the enemy from before you, and will say, ‘Destroy!’” Deuteronomy 33:27.

Sickness, Disease, Pestilence, and Death! Part 3 taken from godisrevealed.com posted on 12-31-19, updated on 3-28-24 ck.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version, copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission, all rights reserved.