In Ezekiel chapter 1, the prophet finds himself in one of the darkest, most disorienting moments of his life. Exiled from his homeland and surrounded by chaos in Babylon—a name that literally means confusion—he was far from the temple, far from Jerusalem and far from anything familiar. And yet, in that very place, heaven opened.
Apostle Jim Raley spoke to his Calvary Christian Center congregation about this powerful story from Ezekiel, giving them prophetic encouragement for the rest of 2025.
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“I came to deliver a prophetic word,” Raley declared. “I want to talk to you today about heaven in the hard place.” He reminded the audience that Ezekiel’s vision came not in a moment of triumph, but in captivity: “Sometimes it takes a difficult season and a hard place to birth revival.”
Ezekiel was 30 years old—trained to be a priest—but he was in a place where his preparation seemed pointless. Yet it was in this moment the Bible says, “The hand of the Lord was upon him there” (Ezek. 1:3, NKJV). Raley emphasized this truth: “Grace has a long reach. It doesn’t matter how far you may feel like you’re away… the hand of the Lord was on him there.”
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He continued, “Where is your there? There for somebody might be pornography. There for somebody might be rebellion. There for somebody might be a broken season. But you are a living witness that the hand of grace has a long reach.”
Not only did God place His hand on Ezekiel—He also spoke directly to him. “God’s voice can even find you still,” Raley said. “Even in far off places, it doesn’t matter how far you got away—He didn’t stop talking to you.”
The Bible says the word of the Lord came expressly to Ezekiel. “That means He came with the right word at the right time,” he explained. “He didn’t wait for Ezekiel to get back to the temple. He didn’t wait for Ezekiel to get cleaned up. He spoke to him when he was far from Jerusalem, far from holy places.”
In the middle of confusion and captivity, Ezekiel saw something astonishing: “The heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God” (Ezek. 1:1). Raley declared: “Heaven can open over a hospital bed. Heaven can open at a graveside. Heaven can open at a halfway house. Heaven can open right in the middle of your wilderness.”
As the world wrestles with confusion and spiritual warfare intensifies, this prophetic message couldn’t be more timely. “We will not help the world until the church gets clarity,” Raley said. “I break every spirit of confusion off of you, and I release clarity in the mighty name of Jesus.”
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So, if you’re in a hard place right now, take heart. God’s hand is not short. His voice still speaks. And heaven can still open. “I don’t care what you’re struggling with,” Raley assured. “We love you. And I want to tell you that God speaks right into messy seasons.”
Abby Trivett is content development editor for Charisma Media.
