The circumstances, the place, and the people should have made it a joyous occasion. After all, it was a birthday party. Relatives were present. Food was abundant. A small child was celebrating her first year of life. But one person in the crowd felt disconnected. In spite of all of the potential for happiness, she felt alone and separate from the rest. She was depressed.
Much like the song describing Ezekiel’s vision of the dry bones, God began to use providential “reconnecting” measures to put new life and breath back into one who felt dry. She saw what life could be like once again.
God specializes in things thought impossible.
God asked Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?” From a human standpoint, that seemed impossible. However, we should be careful not to underestimate the power and the plan of God. Ezekiel was told to preach to the bones and encourage them to hear God’s Word. Once again God’s power was demonstrated, this time by a mass resurrection of dry bones, underscoring that there is only one God, the only one who could accomplish such a feat.
Ezekiel did as he was told. Suddenly there was a commotion. Flesh began to appear on bones. Ezekiel’s prayer summoned the life-giving spirit to return. The breath of life began to animate the corpses.
Are we trusting God to do the impossible?
Many events in the Bible and in life remind us that God can bring new life to those who are discouraged. This transformation is accomplished by the providential working of God through his Word to give life again.
That is what happened to the individual mentioned earlier. Through prayer, hard work, medication, a loving family, and counseling, God was able once again to instill a new breath of life into one who had become as dry bones. God’s Word is dependable! |L
Larry D. Pierson is the preaching minister of the Jamestown Christian Church, Jamestown, Indiana. He and his wife Ruth Ann have two children and two grandchildren.
