Day 30 – April 8, 2025

The Lord’s power overcame me, and while I was in the Lord’s spirit, he led me out and set me down in the middle of a certain valley. It was full of bones. ² He led me through them all around, and I saw that there were a great many of them on the valley floor, and they were very dry. ³ He asked me, “Human one, can these bones live again?” I said, “Lord God, only you know.”  Ezekiel 37:1-3 (CEB)

The potential of new life isn’t always apparent.  I once repotted a peace lily that had seen better days.  The only growth on it was limp and brown.  I cut away the old growth, and moved the root system, the rhizome, to a new pot, with fresh potting soil.  After planting the rhizome in the soil, I watered the soil well, put the pot where it could receive light, and said a prayer.  Having never done this before, I wasn’t sure if the plant would grow back or not.  But sure enough, after some time, new growth began to appear.

When Ezekiel was shown the dry bones, and God asked if there was any hope for life in them, Ezekiel wisely answered, “Lord God, only you know that.”  A field littered with dry bones wouldn’t appear to hold much hope for life.  But as Jesus once told his disciples, “All things are possible for God.”  Reading further in Ezekiel 37, we learn that Ezekiel was instructed to prophesy to the bones, instructing them to come together, and be renewed with sinew, flesh, skin and breath.  God then used this image to give a promise of new life to God’s people, who were feeling hopeless.

Being “in the wilderness” can be a time of feeling like we have little with which to move ahead.  If we rely only on our own abilities and our own insight, hope might be in short supply.  The potential of new life isn’t always apparent.  But God sees what we cannot.  If we trust God with our fears, our doubts, and our hopes, then God will guide us to see the potential of new life ahead.  We can wait on God in confidence, and follow God’s guidance to more fruitful times. 

Let us pray:  Gracious God of life, we thank you for all with which you have blessed us up to this time.  Help us trust you, and rely on your vision for our lives.  Grant us grace to wait for the new life you are bringing forth in us, and to follow your instructions for our days.  Amen.