Ezekiel 37
1The hand of the LORD was upon me, and He brought me out by His Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley, and it was full of bones. 2He led me all around among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, and indeed, they were very dry. 3Then He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones come to life?” “O Lord GOD,” I replied, “only You know.”…
Ezekiel looked around at the piles of bones. They littered the valley floor bleached by the sun and shining white. Each bone represented a life lived but now gone. All that remained of its passing were these bleached remains and distant memories. For a moment let me lead you to a different view of this picture. We know according to scripture that these bones represent a nation yet to be reborn and live again. A restored nation, the nation of Israel.
Each of us in reality will someday find ourselves looking over what once was. The laughter now departed the memories and milestones of victories and untold struggles. Each bearing witness to a moment in time that has left a memorial of our passing. The bones lay scattered amidst the valleys and mountaintops of our past, bleached white by the sun of time.
It is very interesting to me that God asked Ezekiel the question that He did. “Son of man, can these bones come to life”. Ezekiel must have stood silent for a moment as he contemplated the scope of what the Lord was asking. He had never seen such a thing happen in his lifetime. However his answer is a summation of His knowledge of God and his sovereign power. “Only you know…”
Oftentimes as I look back through the pages of the life I have lived, it seems I can once again hear the sounds of laughter and feel the strength of youth along with the fragrance of victories and defeats experienced. The birth of a child, our first home, wedding vows and the trips with our children as we shared their joy of learning. I can see our first home mission church and remember the hours of prayer and work my wife and I shared together to watch God’s garden grow before our eyes. Amidst the bones I can still see the happy faces of those who found meaning through their new relationship with a loving and personal God. However it seems that soon I again find myself standing amidst the bleached bones of what once was and the Lord asks me the question, “can these bones live again?”
As I look longingly down at what once was I to say as Ezkiel, “Lord only you know”. You see now I do not appear as I once did. The strength of youth has faded and my body has lost its ability to handle the workload it once did. Oh but friend my mind is alive and filled with countless stories of battles fought and won. The taste of cool refreshing water amidst the dryness of the deserts of struggle. It seems that age tries to hide the acquired knowledge and lock away the wisdom gained through the past. I say, “Lord only to begin my journey with the wisdom now acquired.” Oh the pits I would have avoided. The things I would have done differently and other things I would not have done at all. The wisdom that has been stored in the vaults of my learning would help guide me around the ambushments of the enemy and the flags of victory would stand on more mountaintops conquered through God’s grace and fortitude. Each bone lying unattended cries out silently of a moment lived and a tear shed and a life given to a cause greater than itself.
Can these bones live again? They are still living through the lives they touched and the knowledge imparted to the following generation. As I think of those who have touched my life I begin to realize that I carry the touch of their burden for God in my own life. As I have touched others I have multiplied their life as it has joined with mine and the one who has received it.
I realize I may not be able to run a mile or climb a mountain, but as long as I breathe I can still speak of the wonders of a life well lived and share the testimonies of countless battles and victories won.