Do You Hear Them? Do You Hear the Rattle?

"...there was a noise, a rattling sound and the bones came together, bone to bone...and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet."

--Ezekiel 37:7, 10 The Bible

On my way to hike Badger Mountain the other day, I heard the song by Elevation Worship, “Dry Bones Rattle.”  As I walked to the top, I couldn’t help but ponder over the words. This email was a Facebook post, but I've been thinking about this all week. I don't write many emails that are Christian-faith themed, but this is one....

The words in quotations are from the song: 

“Friday’s disappointment was Sunday’s empty tomb, since when has impossible ever stopped You?”

Could life ever get crazier? There are so many events that could steal our joy…if we let it. So many distractions and unknowns on which we can focus. So many things out of our control. 

If I focus on the negative, that’s not only what grows in my life, but it’s what I attract. AND if my thoughts are gloomy, I want to isolate, too. I don't want to be around anyone else. Really, who would want to be with me when I was feeling like dry bones? Haven't we all been in an isolated desert enough these last months? 

The song comes from this Bible story: The Lord and the prophet Ezekiel were sitting in the middle of a desert valley full of a great many dry bones. (Ezekiel 37 You gotta read the story!)

The Lord says, “Hey, Zeke (okay not his exact words), can these bones live?”

Zeke replies, “O Lord, you alone know.”

As I hiked, I thought to myself, “where in my life am I like dry bones? What part of my life has been parched and bleached like dry bones in the desert?” I’m like dry bones when I focus on things that are not mine to control…when I give power in my mind to things and people that I am powerless over. Ouch. When I focus on the negative I am like dry bones in the desert. 

The Lord told Ezekiel how to make the dry bones come to life by speaking life into them...and the rattle began…dry bones began to come to life...again. 

Back to the song: “Praise makes the dead man walk again.” Beholding the beauty of Badger Mountain and the valley below caused gratefulness to well up inside me. It felt like rain in my desert. I have so many blessings in my life!  Praising and thanking God for these blessings always lifts me up. 

 “Open the grave, I’m comin’ out! I’m going to live again.”

What about you? Do you have some dry bone places in your life? Is your past holding you hostage? Is your prayer life off? Do you feel inadequate, lacking The Power? Do unknowns cause tornado stomach? (Oh wait…that was me.) Do you feel like you're in a tomb of negative thinking? 

“You’re not gonna run out of miracles anytime soon.” 

God’s not running out of miracles. We need to expect His miracles. Look for them. What is your needed miracle? What would your life look like if you got that miracle? Create that vision in your mind and think on that. Think on the positive and praise God for what you do have. “Praise makes the dead man walk again.”

Do you hear it? Open the grave and come on out. Dry bones rattling and coming to life. LIVE again! Really LIVE again! You have The Power within you! "Resurrection Power runs in my veins, too. I believe there's another miracle in this room."  If you want to hear the song "Rattle", click here:

https://youtu.be/4rzhPg9697k  

Hopefully typed,

Jan