[The Lord said,] “‘Your fugitives will remember me in the nations to which they’ve been banished, how I was crushed when their roving hearts turned away from me, and their roving eyes went after their idols. They will loathe themselves for their treacherous acts and detestable practices,’” (Ezekiel 6:9 CEB)
Another translation (VOICE) puts a portion of that verse this way: “‘…I have been wounded by their promiscuous hearts that turned away from Me, how I have been hurt by their wandering eyes that desired lifeless idols…’”
When I read my daily devotional today, I literally wept. First, because I felt the crushing pain I have felt in my past – pain inflicted by someone that was supposed to love me – yet chose to have a roving heart and roving eyes that ultimately lead to promiscuous behavior – repeatedly. Second, because as I continued to read, realization set in as to how I’ve been guilty of doing the same thing – allowing my roving heart & eyes to turn to “idols” that caused me to be unfaithful to my Lord and Savior.
Chris Tiegreen, the author of my devotional book Hearing His Voice, talked about how the pain of rejection from someone you love – whether a “romantic partner or a family member or a friend – is one of the worst pains a human being can feel.”
When I was about 20 years old I was betrayed by a very close friend that seemed to be a total rejection of our relationship. My first reaction was a lot of anger that soon morphed into a crushing pain. There was eventually a small reconciliation but things were never the same between us.
I was married for over 31 years to someone that very early on in our marriage started having a roving heart and eyes. He just couldn’t seem to gain control of his promiscuous heart, because the unfaithfulness happened every few years. Was I a perfect person/wife? Of course not. But did I deserve the repeated hurt that was inflicted on me so many times? I just don’t think so. We tried counseling more than once but it just didn’t stop the behavior. I finally threw in the towel and left the marriage with an extremely wounded heart and soul. I suffered from those wounds emotionally for a very long time and just couldn’t let the anger and resentment fully go. One day in my time of prayer he came to my mind and God said “Pray for him.” I just couldn’t do it and told God so. But on multiple occasions He kept speaking to me – “Pray for him.” I can’t remember how long I resisted but finally relented. Once I started praying for him, over a bit of time, the anger and resentment finally faded. I believe once I finally started praying for him, the true forgiveness began – and we all know that forgiveness isn’t for the other person, it’s for you and your own peace.
In more recent years, I have felt the pain of what feels like rejection from a close family member. I do not understand it all. I don’t know what I’ve done or said to cause this and it hurts. I don’t even know how to address it in order to try to “clear the air”. But I pray…
I stated above that there was a “first” and a “second” reason for my tears this morning. Those three stories above explain why the tears – the first reason. As for why the tears – the second reason…
Mr Tiegreen continues on saying “I realized in the midst of a season of rejection that God experiences that pain every single day. Millions of beloved people reject His love, sometimes with apathy or ignorance, and sometimes with outright contempt.” He then speaks about how God isn’t human but we were made in His image so our emotions – including hurts – surely reflect His own. “He spoke through many prophets about His grief in being rejected by those He loves.” (Such as Ezekiel 6:9) “When we feel rejection and talk to God about it, we begin to understand the personal pain He feels.”
Those thoughts caused me to think of the many times in my life that I have rejected God by allowing my roving heart and eyes to focus too intently on things other than Him – on how I have even directed my anger at Him. It’s too easy for us to put too much attention on our lives and what makes us happy – our families, our friends and fun activities rather than honoring the One that makes it all possible. It also was way too easy for me to get angry with God and blame Him for my failed marriage.
You see, I believed that I had heard from God that He was going to use my husband and I in a ministry to couples that had experienced infidelity. (Yes, believe it or not, during all those years, we were active in a church and a Bible study group.) So when my husband strayed yet again and all my wounds were reopened I was crushed. I shook my fist at God, cried, yelled and questioned why He hadn’t changed my husband? I later realized that God wasn’t going to change him – He’s not a puppeteer. It was up to the man to change his own heart and mind in order to move forward into God’s will – it was apparent that he just did not have the desire to do that.
So, I grieved for the pain I have inflicted on God.
Mr. Tiegreen continued with this: “Anytime you experience joy or grief or any other emotion in a relationship, explore how those feelings might connect you with the heart of God. His interactions with human beings are often reflected in our interactions with one another. The things that cause us to feel pain or pleasure often have a parallel in biblical prophecies that describe God’s passions for His people. When we are alert to our relational dynamics we can hear Him portraying His feelings in them.”
And, I want to make his short little prayer at the end my own: “Lord, I don’t just want to know about Your heart; I want to experience the things You experience. Share them with me. Alert me to Your feelings. Connect me to your experiences through my own.” I believe that if we adopt that way of thinking, we’ll be more aware of our weaknesses and failures, giving us the opportunity to show our love and gratefulness to God – reducing the chances we will crush/wound/hurt/grieve His Spirit. So be it Lord.
Written by Karran Martin – November 10, 2025
[All bold emphasis is mine]
Karran's Korner 
Great message. I know how you feel. My husband did the same thing. Only I stayed but wish I had of had the wisdom and strength to have left him. Our marriage is good now but there’s so much hurt and damage. Andrea
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Thank you Andrea. Maybe staying was what you were supposed to do. If my husband had stopped, even as late as the last go round, we’d likely still be together. But it became apparent to me he didn’t have it in him to control himself. Hopefully you can receive the complete healing you need. I had SO much anger & resentment & I knew that it wasn’t good for me & my emotional health. When God started telling me, almost every day during my prayer time, to pray for them (when we divorced he moved in with then married his last lover) – I kept refusing, telling God I just couldn’t do it. But He eventually wore me down & I started praying for them both. That changed my life – the anger, resentment & unforgivenes fell away. I still pray for them daily. If you haven’t done that, maybe it would help.
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