Years ago, as early pioneers traveled from the populated east to the western frontier of the United States, they did not go very far in the desert before encountering sad scenes of bleached bones--people who had passed that way before them and had died in the wilderness.
The prophet Ezekiel had a spiritual vision of sun-bleached bones described in chapter 37 of the book bearing his name:
The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord. So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them. Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. (Ezekiel 37:1-10)
While this passage refers prophetically to Israel, it can also be applied spiritually to believers. There are many of God's people who have fallen in the wilderness, so to speak. We see their dry bones littering the pathway as we pass by. As people of God, we should reach out to those who are dead or dying spiritually in the wilderness with the good news that dry bones can live again!
These people, like the nation of Israel, feel that all hope is lost. God's message to them is: ..."Oh my people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land...." (Ezekiel 37:12-14).
The dead and dying in the spiritual wilderness need the new life of God to flow through their dry bones. As you travel through the trackless desert, you can revive them with a Word from the Lord: Dry bones can live again!
PRAYER:
My FATHER, My God, this year let my life reflect the blessing of the Lord, I shall not be static, I decree PROGRESS, FAVOR, HONOR, AND INFLUENCE are my portion. My life is SALTED, My speech is SALTED, My Home and Business are SALTED in the name of Jesus.