Ezekiel 37-39
Does your life seem dry? Well this one’s for you.
One of the most famous stories in the Bible is the “Valley of Dry Bones,” as we see here in Ezekiel. Songs have been written about it throughout the generations. Yet do we really get the full meaning of this story? Probably not.
Ezekiel sees the vision of these dry, dead bones scattered around. No life whatsoever. Yet God tells Ezekiel to speak to the bones and tell them to hear the Word of the Lord, and as he does, the bones come together and stand up on their feet. Then God’s breath is breathed into them.
First of all, the vision stands for prayer and more prayer. And prayer with faith. The bones are too dead to stand up on their own. They have to have help, so Ezekiel takes his stand as the intercessor for these people.
So how does this concept help us? We all have those around us who seem to be dead to the things of God. They may be alive physically, but they have a deaf ear turned to their Creator.
So we begin to speak to those bones – not in their presence, of course, but when we are alone. We speak God’s Word and we tell those bones to rise up and come together. Then we call for the Holy Spirit to blow His breath into them.
This life of intercession is incredibly powerful. There are those around us who don’t know thow to pray for themselves, but we can pray for them. We ask on their behalf for God’s good blessings to fall upon them and wake them up to a new life in Him.
Now God won’t cross their will, but He will bring them countless opportunities to know Him and to change their direction. Many will do just that.
Then we have the privilege of not only praying for our immediate family, but for others around us. Our communities, our nation, and the world are all in need of awakening – which comes in this way.
There’s an awakening on the horizon. In fact, it’s already started in some quadrants. If we will work with our Father, just as Ezekiel was instructed to do, we will be able to get in on His plan.
II Peter 1-2
Do you like checklists? Do you like to have a list of things to follow as you plan your finances or a more organized home? Well, Peter has one even better than that. He has a checklist for having a life which never stumbles.
It starts with appreciating the “precious and magnificent promises” which our God has brought to us through His Word. If we will partake of these we will partake of His divine nature. (1:4) So how do we partake? We believe the promises He has given us, and we believe that they are for us – not just for others.
So we start with faith in that Word, and then we add to it. We add moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. If these things are increasing in our lives, we will never stumble.(1:5-10)
This is the thing. If we keep our focus on our Father, His Word, and on applying the principles to our lives, we will continue to grow. We won’t get distracted by the things of the world which try to pull us away from Him.
And we won’t stumble. We may have days which don’t seem so great, but the overall trend of our lives will be for the good.
