Dry Bones

The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me"Son of man, can these bones live?"

I said, "O Sovereign Lord, you alone know."

Ezekiel 37:1-3

I don't know about you but my first reaction is..."Uh, no God, bones cannot live again." But do you see the response given..."O Sovereign Lord, you alone know." That's faith and that amazes me! You see, it's not just about dry bones but about the death of my own hopes and dreams. There are things throughout my life that I've watched die and I wondered if they would ever see life again. And here's my answer..."O Sovereign Lord, you alone know." But wait there's more to this....

Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones and say to them, 'Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.'"

Ezekiel 37:4-6

He will. God will bring dreams and hopes to life again. Will they look exactly as before...maybe, maybe not. Did these dry bones look exactly as before...I don't know. I would like to think that maybe they looked different because His breath of life was in them and they were a new creation.

So I prophesied as I was commanded [hello faith!]. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.

Ezekiel 37:7-8

I don't know about you but I've been in this place where I could see the dreams coming to life, but they were just an exoskeleton...there wasn't any life, any breath in them. And that's a hard place to be. Seeing what could be, but not having the life and breath of God in them. And that's when they need to die. Die to my selfishness so that God can rebuild according to His plan and His life for me.

Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.'" So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet - a vast army.

Then he said to me: "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, 'Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.'

Therefore prophesy and say to them: 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord. '"

Ezekiel 37:11-14

The hopes and dreams that I've had throughout my life may have seemed dead, but God will breathe new life into them. They may look the same as what I saw, or they may be different. But it will all be for His glory. Their death will be for His glory...not just so that I may see His works, but that all around me may see Him. The new life that He will breathe into me will be a testimony of His love, grace, glory and resurrection. And in the end it will be worth all the pain because I will be able to say...

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-21