Them Bones

Ezekiel 37: 1-6
The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

And he did.

On one of our walks at the park, I glanced up. Branches of the white birch bark on the bare trees shone against the brilliant blue sky. The white birch branches reminded me of the story in Ezekiel where God sent him to the valley of the bones and asked him to prophesy to the bones. Ezekiel may have wondered why, but he obeyed. God knew in His sovereignty that the bones would rise again in new life. Ezekiel witnessed a miracle.

On days when it’s hard to put one foot in front of the other, I hang on to God’s promises of hope. Some days my fibromyalgia flairs and my body doesn’t want to move. On those days, I feel like the dry bones in the valley. Other days, the fibro stays calm, and you’d never know I had any health issues. Those days I thank God for the breath of life.

When my eyes caught sight of the beautiful bare branches and the blue sky, God reminded me to rest when I need to and engage in life when I can. You see, I still have work to do on this earth. So did Ezekiel. He had a story to tell and bones to raise. On the days I feel like I’m in the valley with the bones, I’m reminded of the breath God breathed into the bones and the breath He breaths into me.

Thank God for all days and know He is with you.

Contemplate

Contemplation.

I wonder what these two ducks are thinking.

How safe is the water to swim in?

The bugs they'll catch and eat.

Where are their friends and family?

Many of us live busy lives, moving from one thing to the next without much thought.

God reminds me to ponder the possibilities before I leap ahead.

I'm not always good at it, but I know in my heart-- 

God wants me to consider everything through His lens.

 

Stand Strong and Courageous

Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

I salute the men and women who serve in the military.

My dad served in World War 2. He never talked about his time overseas, much. I know he was stationed in the Philippines and New Guinea for a time. After he had passed away, my sister discovered a letter written to our mom where the commanding officer stated dad had received a Soldier’s Medal for saving the life of a fellow soldier. I’m proud of my dad for having the courage to rescue the man.

I thank the Lord for men and women who choose to stand strong and courageous for our country. So many have given the ultimate sacrifice of their lives to keep American soil safe. I thank the Lord for the families who stand beside the military folks. The children who miss their parent or both parents, the spouses who hold the home together, the parents of the enlisted all need our prayers.

Moses handed the leadership to Joshua to lead the people into the promised land. They had to be prepared to take the land and win the battle. God commanded Joshua to be strong and courageous.

I may not be in the military, but I am in a battle zone. The war between good and evil surrounds me every day. God calls me to be strong—His strength fills me—He calls me to be courageous—To not be discouraged. The best news is—God goes with me wherever I go!

This Veteran’s Day, pray for our military, thank our service people, pray for peace, ask God for strength and courage and fight the spiritual battles with faith and hope. 

A Matter of Perspective

I walked across the living room and caught a glimpse of my lighthouse chimes.

The sun shone through the window and cast a shadow of the wooden piece.

The long skinny lighthouse's shape 

changed into a shorter and wider version of itself.

The perspective changed. 

Had I just seen the shadow, 

I would have assumed the object 

to be very different from the original. 

Isn't that how it is with people sometimes?

We only see a fragment of them

or we assume we see the heart of the person, when we don't.

God sees the real us. He sees beyond the shadows, into our heart.

 

Need Rest?

Matthew 11:28-30
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers." -Anne Shirley

This week the leaves on the deciduous trees burst with color. Autumn shone her glorious scarlets, golds, and ambers. God’s paintbrush kissed the sky with azure blue. What a lovely time.

As I look at the trees and think about their preparation for winter, I know they will rest. Each oak and maple will shed their leaves, and their systems will slow as they slumber through the cold months. Sometimes, I envy the trees. They have a cycle that guarantees time for respite and refreshment.

In the busy world we live in, rest seems like a bad word. Stopping to admire the trees and renew the spirit is often overlooked. Maybe because I’m older now, I value slowing down and sitting with Jesus more than ever.

In Matthew 11, Jesus is speaking to a group of people in Galilee, and I’m guessing He’s also addressing his disciples. The folks He preached to experienced weariness. They were in the midst of the friction between those who believed Jesus was Messiah and those who ridiculed Him. Jesus invited them to come to Him. When he mentions his humble and gentle heart, it feels like a warm hug for my weary soul. Jesus’ yoke is easy, and His burden is light because Jesus shares our needs with God, who hears our prayers.

What a beautiful cycle the trees experience and what an amazing cycle we have when Jesus takes our burdens and carries them to Father God. Our load is eased, and we can rest.

Take your cares to Jesus, find rest in Him, and value the time to slow down.

A Beautiful Moment

About two weeks ago, I plucked the last of the zinnias 

and cosmos and pulled the stems and roots out of the ground. 

I'll miss their bright colors until next summer, 

but their beauty never quite leaves me,

thanks to photos which captured the moment.

I hope you are capturing beautiful moments this week.

 

Place in This World

Philippians 1:3-6
I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Teach children they have a purpose.

My friend, Bev, and I pulled into the parking lot at Truist Arena on the Northern Kentucky University campus. We looked forward to watching For King and Country perform their songs. As we filed in, and found our seats, I looked around at all the people. Folks united, not just to hear the music, but to worship God.

We were not disappointed. Joel and Luke Smallbone and their band poured all of their energy into leading us in a time of rejoicing. In between the songs, they told their story. Their family had traveled from Australia to America, but when they arrived in Nashville, their father’s job fell through. The children were young. They’d moved to a new country from a beautiful home, and now they had nothing to speak of. No furniture, no car, no job. The beautiful thing about their story is that their parents gathered those youngsters together and asked them to pray. They gave them specific items to pray for, and the kids witnessed answered prayers. They involved them in the work they needed to do to make ends meet. They gave them responsibility.

The Smallbone children grew into adults with purpose. Doors opened for them as they trusted God with their lives. No, we won’t all be in the limelight, but whatever we do for God is important. Know you have purpose in whatever you do. Seek God’s guidance and let the Holy Spirit lead.

Share God with children. Teach them God gives purpose to every person, teach them to pray and trust the Father, then lead by example.