ANGELS WATCHING OVER YOU

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ANGEL, SHEPHERDS
Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields,
keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord
stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them,
and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid,
for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.
For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ
the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped
in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was
with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
       “ Glory to God in the highest,
      And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
Luke 2:8-14

When most people think of angels, they imagine some nondescript being that has no form or feelings just floating around in the clouds. And in the background they picture God sitting on a golden throne holding a joystick and controlling their every move. (I know…I get a little carried away with my descriptions!) But can you relate?

However, angels are real beings (although created beings) who think and have emotions. If that were not so, Satan could not have talked one-third of them into rebelling against God. I Peter 1:12 says, “Even angels long to look into these things (salvation).” So apparently angels have desires and even curiosity, although their primary desire is to serve God. Angels can appear as men, as they did to Abraham on their way to Sodom and Gomorrah. He prepared a meal and they ate with him. And of course, we know that the Bible is full of instances where Angels defended and protected people. “For He will give His angels [especial] charge over you to accompany and defend and preserve you in all your ways [of obedience and service].” (Psalm 91:11 AMP)

But did you know that the Lord also assigned them to be servants to those who believe in Him? “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrews 1:14) Many a time I have called upon Angels to help me with something or do something for me. Now let me make this clear, I do not pray to angels. Angels are not to be worshipped. And whenever I feel that angels have assisted me in a situation, I give thanks to God, not them. You make think I’m a little “flaky”, but I believe help from Angels is readily available to us according to the scripture.

And of course, in the passage in Luke above, we see that they rejoiced at the birth of Jesus. They displayed joy and gladness. So from biblical accounts, Angels are actual beings which were created by God with emotions and thinking capabilities. We can’t normally see them, although some people say they have. But we can be assured of their existence and their interaction with mankind…especially if you believe!

THE OBEDIENCE OF JOSEPH

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JOSEPH AND MARY
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about:
His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph,
but before they came together, she was found to be with child
through the Holy Spirit.
Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to
expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him
in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home
as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,
because he will save his people from their sins.”

 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
“The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel” —which means, “God with us.”

 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.
Matthew 1:18-24

Think about this scenario: You are a man who is engaged to be married. You are happily awaiting the wedding night when your mutual love will be consummated. You will no longer be two separate entities, but as the Bible says, you will become “one flesh” united with God’s blessing. But all of a sudden, the joyful anticipation is shattered by news unfathomable…the one in whom you have put your trust has seemingly been unfaithful. You know it’s not your child, for you have not yet known her intimately. What are you going to do? You still love her and don’t want to cause her public shame. “Okay, think this over calmly”, you say to yourself. “You can just break off the engagement privately without anyone’s name being dragged through the mud.” You go to bed that night still pondering the situation. Your fretful sleep is further interrupted by…“What is this?…an angel!” He is telling you not to be afraid to take your sweetheart as your wife because the child she is carrying is non-other than the long awaited Messiah and she has conceived by the Holy Spirit, not a mortal man. Your bride-to-be is to be the mother of our Lord! Do you dare believe it? You know what the angel said and you know the message was from God. Then excitement begins to arise as you realize that you also have been chosen…chosen to care for the mother of the very Son of God!  Not only so, but to be an earthly father to Jesus!

This is the story of Joseph and his part in the birth of Jesus. The Bible says he did exactly as the angel commanded him. He took Mary as his wife, but did not have a marital relationship with her until after Jesus was born. What dedication this man had to the things of God! Think about it. Would you have obeyed the voice of the angel in blind faith? Or would you have attributed the whole dream to a bad case of indigestion? We can still hear the voice of the Lord today if we are listening. He probably won’t send an angel, but He still speaks in that still, small voice deep inside. Will you be like Joseph and believe and obey without question?

NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE

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MARY, GABRIEL

Since this is the Christmas season and only a short time until Christmas Day, I would like us to focus on events relative to that celebration in our upcoming devotionals. In particular I would like to examine the people who took part in that first Christmas, the birth of our Lord, and their reactions to it. In so doing, I hope that we can get some insight into our own feelings and emotions relating to the season.

In the sixth month God sent the angel Gabriel . . . to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph.
Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman!
The Lord is with you!”

Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean.

“Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.
He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High…
His Kingdom will never end!”

Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”

The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God . . . For nothing is impossible with God.”

Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her. Luke 1:26-38

Wow! Can you imagine having an angel visit you? Like Mary, you probably would be a little apprehensive, wondering why he was there! Put yourself in her place for a moment and try to think the way she may have thought. You’re busy, going about your everyday life when suddenly an angel appears right in front of you! To say you’re surprised would be an understatement! Afraid…of course! Apprehensive…no doubt! Confused… inevitably! Well, Mary experienced all of those things as well. But the most important thing recorded relative to Mary’s reaction was submission…obedience to the will of God, and after that…overwhelming peace and joyful anticipation.

We can learn a valuable lesson from Mary’s story. Often when new or unexpected circumstances appear in our lives, we are initially taken by surprise. Then fear tries to grip us, as we become apprehensive about the outcome. Sometimes we are confused, thinking, “Why me?” But if we can ultimately get to the point where we turn it all over to God and submit to His divine will and purpose…if we can trust in His loving kindness and mercy that is new every morning, how can anything but hope arise in our heart? Then, as with Mary, surely overwhelming peace and joyful anticipation of good things to come will follow!

“. . . For nothing is impossible with God.”

DON’T DOUBT THE ANGEL

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ZACHARIAH
But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah;
your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son,
and you are to call him John. He will be a joy and delight to you,
and many will rejoice because of his birth,
for he will be great in the sight of the Lord.”
Luke 1:13-14

Since we are beginning the celebration of Christmas, I thought we could look at those passages in the Bible that preface this glorious season. It is interesting the perfect order in which God orchestrated the birth of His Son. Old Testament Prophets, not only foretold His birth, but they told of a forerunner that would come to prepare the hearts of the people to receive Him. That forerunner was John the Baptist born to the High Priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth.

An angel appeared to Zechariah while he was ministering in the Holy of Holies in the temple. As you can imagine, Zechariah was petrified! In those days if the High Priest had any sin in his life when he came to minister, he was smitten and died. Maybe Zechariah thought the angel was there to give him a death sentence. Certainly he never dreamed that he would be the messenger of such wonderful news. Although Zechariah and Elizabeth were well beyond child bearing age, the angel told him that they were going to have a son. And although scripture indicates that they had been praying a long time for such a miracle, Zechariah doubted the word of the angel. He said, “How do I know that this will come to pass?” I think that is a statement that he regretted for quite some time, for the angel said, “This is how you will know. You will not be able to talk until your son is born.” Talk about something rendering you speechless! The angel went on to say that they should name the child John. When Zechariah’s speech was restored, friends and neighbors asked him, “What do you want to name him…Zechariah, Jr.?” “No”, he said, “We will call him John!” Zechariah was not going to make the mistake of questioning the angel twice!

But like Zechariah, are there times that we have been praying for something for so long that it has become more a ritual than an inspiration? And like Zechariah, if the answer came now, would we be in shock and disbelief? We need to keep our faith alive by continually feeding on the promises in God’s Word. Then we will live expecting our prayers to be answered…maybe even today!

Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray,
believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
Mark 11:24

“I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?
Jeremiah 32:27

HAVE AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE

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CAT THANKSGIVING
Thank [God] in everything [no matter what the circumstances may be,
be thankful and give thanks], for this is the will of God
for you [who are] in Christ Jesus.
I Thessalonians 5:18 AMP

This is most definitely something that is more easily said than done.  But since it’s God’s Word, it must be something that is not only doable, but beneficial as well. Now first of all you have to understand that the verse says in everything give thanks.  It doesn’t say give thanks for everything.  God doesn’t expect us to give thanks for a toothache or a financial setback.  But he does expect us to give thanks in the midst of trouble.   An “attitude of gratitude” can see us through even the most difficult of circumstances.  Even though things may not be ideal, we can always find something to be thankful for.  Many nights when I crawl into bed I say, “Thank you, Lord, for my own bed with clean sheets and a soft pillow for my head.”  What a difference it makes in the way we feel, to look for something to be thankful for.  It changes our whole outlook, attitude and demeanor.

I recently read about a young man in Great Britain who is an accomplished and nationally acclaimed, writer.  He is only in his twenties, but is hailed as a genius in his field.  That in itself is awe inspiring.  But much more so is the fact that this young man was born with multiple sclerosis and is confined to a wheelchair.  The severity of his disease is such that it takes him thirty minutes to write one word.  Yes, you read that right…thirty minutes to write one word!  Can you imagine?!  The account said that when he was young he was despondent and complained of his plight.  But his mom said to him, “You have two good eyes and a bright mind.  Make the best of what you have!”  He thought about it and decided to have the “attitude of gratitude” that we talked about.  It made all the difference in the world for his entire future.  I can’t even conceive of having such a dire obstacle to overcome.  Most of us can’t.  Surely we can use the story of this young man to motivate us to “give thanks in everything.”

The Bible tells us that because the Children of Israel murmured and complained they totally missed out on the blessings of entering into the promised land…the land of milk and honey…a place of rest. God brought them out of bondage to the Egyptians by opening the Red Sea for them and allowing them to walk through on dry ground and yet they constantly challenged His ability to provide for them. And when He did provide, it was never good enough! Can you see any such similarities in your own life? Paul tells us in the Book of Hebrews that we need to be careful lest we fall into the same pattern of murmuring and complaining as the Children of Israel and we fail to enter into that rest.

The Psalmist tells us that God inhabits the praises of His people. Would you like for God to inhabit your life…your circumstances? Then, learn to thank and praise Him that the answer is on its way and enter into the rest that only trust in Him can provide!
And…
The chains that seem to bind you, will fall powerless behind you…
when you praise Him!

SONGS OF DELIVERANCE

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HOPES CAR

The Lord is my light and my salvation— so why should I be afraid?
The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger,
so why should I tremble?
Psalm 27:1 NLT
You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.
Psalm 32:7 NIV

My oldest granddaughter, Hope, was traveling home from work recently on a very rainy day. She works the night shift at a hospital about forty miles from her home. She had just finished her twelve hour shift and was traveling home on the interstate when her car hit a wet spot and she lost control. She said the car spun around a couple of times, facing oncoming traffic before sliding off the road into a shallow ditch. Miraculously Hope was not hurt and the car was not damaged. The angels had to be surrounding her as it says in Psalm 91…a psalm I pray over my family regularly. The picture at the top of this devotional is an actual picture of the car at its resting place beside the interstate. Please notice the cross in the background. How awesome is that! It’s as though the Lord is confirming His power to protect and deliver in every situation! Glory to His name!

Have you ever thought about how many times a year, a week or a day that the Lord protects us from danger? I travel to work on the interstate each morning and many a time the Lord has protected me from an accident. When He does so, I think to myself, “How many times does He protect me from situations of which I’m not even aware?”

The psalmist says in the above passages that as children of God, we have no reason to be afraid. Our Lord will protect us from danger and trouble. I love the next half of that verse… “He will surround us with songs of deliverance!” Doesn’t your heart just resound with joy when you know that the Lord has delivered you from trouble of any kind? And He does it joyfully…with songs of deliverance!

The Lord is not only able to deliver us from physical danger but from spiritual and emotional troubles as well. This is what the Lord Himself says, “I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?” (Jeremiah 32:27) And Jeremiah the prophet says this about it…“O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for you!” (Jeremaih 32:17)

In this generation more than any other, we have numerous opportunities to fear…terrorist attacks, unprecedented weather changes, gang violence, home invasions and unstable economy, to name a few. But as I heard someone put it very succcinctly, “When Fear knocks at the door, send Faith to answer!” This is something we need to settle in our minds before the circumstance arises, expected or unexpected…“I will not fear!” When your car (or circumstance) starts to spin out of control, you need to know that the Lord is your Deliverer in time of trouble! You need to know that He is surrounding you with songs of deliverance! Listen carefully. I’m sure you can hear the music.

Lord, You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.
Psalm 32:7 NIV

DO I REALLY WANT TO DO IT MYSELF?

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CLIMBING

“Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh.
Is there anything too hard for Me?
Jeremiah 32:27 NKJ

When I started to get ready for work this morning, I noticed a granddaddy spider in my bathtub. It is a huge “garden tub”, so I was wondering how he got in there. But soon it became obvious to me that HE was wondering how he was going to get out! I watched for a moment as he tried unsuccessfully to climb the slick walls of the tub only to fall back down again after a few steps. My next thought was to rescue this poor creature from his almost certain doom. So I tried over and again to grab one of his long legs, but he always scrambled from my grasp. Finally I just said, “Hey, I’m trying to help you here!” I grabbed him with my entire hand, took him to the front door and released him into the wild! : ) (How is that for melodrama?)

No sooner had I accomplished my dangerous rescue effort than I heard the Lord speaking to my heart saying… “That’s how it is with my children sometimes. When you have hardships or even get yourself into a predicament of your own making, instead of running to me for help, you start running scared in the other direction. I want to help you! I’m trying to help you! But you are running from me rather than running toward me. My hand is outstretched, but instead of grabbing onto it, you are trying to come up with a solution yourself while climbing the slick wall of circumstances and falling back down again and again.”

I have a two year old granddaughter and she is a great illustration of our human tendency toward self sufficiency. She will be trying to do something with much effort…something very difficult for a two year old. But when I ask, “Do you want Meme to help you?” Her answer is an emphatic “No!” Now, unlike the spider, she usually succeeds in the end through sheer determination. But sometimes it would be so much easier if she would just accept help.

We adults have the same stubborn tendency toward our Heavenly Father at times. Instead of humbling ourselves and going to Him in prayer and dependency, we trudge on with the weight of the world on our shoulders when He has told us to “cast all our care on Him”. (1 Peter 5:7) And Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” Wouldn’t it be so much easier to go to the Lord at the first sign of trouble instead of trying and trying on our own to remedy the situation. But often we make calling on the Lord our last resort, after we have exhausted all of our own resources. Have you ever heard someone say, “Well, I guess there is nothing left to do but pray?”…as though it is an admission of hopelessness and defeat. At the first sign of hardship we should not be saying, “God, look how big my problem is!” Instead we should be saying, “Problem, look how big my God is!!!” I’m just saying it makes all the difference in our perspective. And acting on it, makes all the difference in the outcome!

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest.
Matthew 11:28

STRENGTH FOR THE WEARY

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EAGLE GOLDEN
Haven’t you known, haven’t you heard
that the everlasting God, Adonai,
the Creator of the ends of the earth,
does not grow tired or weary?
His understanding cannot be fathomed.
He invigorates the exhausted,
He gives strength to the powerless.
Young men may grow tired and weary,
even the fittest may stumble and fall;
but those who hope in Adonai will renew their strength,
they will soar aloft as with eagles’ wings;
when they are running they won’t grow weary,
when they are walking they won’t get tired.
Isaiah 40:28-31
Complete Jewish Bible

Are you weary today? Are you tired of the “rat race” so to speak? Well, I am. I have to depend on the Lord to renew my strength daily. And you know what I’ve discovered? He usually doesn’t give it ahead of time. He doesn’t give me tomorrow’s strength today. He gives me today’s strength for today and tomorrow’s strength will be there when I need it.

We can spend our entire life anticipating the future and it won’t change it one bit. But if we spend our entire life trusting in God’s grace for the future, it changes everything! Rest follows very closely on the heels of trust. If you are truly trusting, you will abide in rest. There is no place for stress in the believing heart. Oh, you will have opportunity for it, but don’t let it get a foot in the door. When stress comes knocking…send a trusting heart to answer. For once you let stress get a foothold, you have to expend a lot of energy and more stress to get him out. Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. (James 4:7) Let’s learn to just head it off at the pass!

You may be thinking, “Well, God may get tired of me constantly depending on Him.” Are you kidding me?! Our Heavenly Father loves for us to be totally dependent on Him. He wants us to rest in His unending grace, the unmerited favor that Jesus purchased for us with such an awesome price…His own shed blood. And Our Father never gets tired or weary. He’s always there, waiting for His children to call on Him, day or night. But you know what is even better? We can just abide in His grace, knowing that moment by moment He is providing our every need. Knowing that, as an eagle, He will give us the strength…physically, spiritually, mentally and emotionally to soar above the temptations, trials and stresses of this life. Hallelujah!!! Now make a decision that from this moment on, you’re going to abide in His grace, rest in His love…and trust Him to help you soar with the wings of an eagle!

I WILL NOT BE DISMAYED!!!

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CAT SHAME w.Words

Fear not, for I am with you;
      Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
      I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you,
      I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
Isaiah 41:10

This is absolutely one of my favorite verses…so much so that I even set it to music. Think about it…how many times a day do we have the opportunity to be dismayed? Webster defines dismay as, “to cause to lose courage or resolution; to upset or perturb.” “The thief (Satan) comes to steal, kill and destroy” and might I add, to cause us to be dismayed. (John 10:10) Steal, kill and destroy what? Whatever he can…our peace, our joy, our health, our finances…just our general well-being. Does he do it by cataclysmic occurrences that permanently alter our life? Ninety-nine percent of the time…No! He does it by seemingly insignificant, little nit-picky annoyances that never seem to come one at a time, but in duplicate or triplicate form! Let me give you a perfect example and one that prompted this devotional. (“By the way Lord, why do you keep giving me personal examples? Can‘t I just use someone else‘s?”) Anyway, one morning I was absolutely determined to get to work on time. (Those who know me know what a challenge that is in itself!) I was really doing quite well time wise and so I decided to do something I’d been meaning to do for a while…set off some flea bombs under my house. Yes, you read that right… flea bombs. Although I have no animals in my house, I have a number of cats outside and have surprisingly found a few of the pesky critters trying to invade my domain. I thought since the cats often take refuge under the house, the fleas might have come up from there. I decided I would set off the bombs right before leaving for work. With bombs in hand, along with all of my other paraphernalia, I shut the back door. The open soft drink bottle in my hand slipped and fell on the ground. Before I could retrieve it, half of my morning Dr. Pepper was watering the grass! I picked up the drink, found some Kleenex and wiped off the dripping bottle. “Oh, well”, I said to myself, “I will not be dismayed. I didn’t need but half of that sugar anyway.” I put the remainder of my stuff in the car and refocused on my mission…the flea bombs! It was no easy task since my house is enclosed with siding, but I found a small breach, pulled back the excess panel and after practically standing on my head was able to activate the first can and throw it under. I was making progress. I took the second can, got on my knees to see what I was doing, activated the can and threw it under. It hit one of the air conditioning ducts, bounced back and was thoroughly spraying the cement support nearest the opening. I retrieved it to try again! I have to stick my whole head under the house while holding my breath to keep from inhaling the poisonous fumes. I grab the spewing can and try to take aim so that I don’t hit something else and have it boomerang back in my face. I close the door (with no little effort!), get up off the ground (with no little effort!), dust off my knees and say, “I absolutely refuse to be dismayed!” I then make my way to the car and head off for work. When I look at the clock, I know I will be at least ten minutes late…again!!!

Do you think I meant this to be funny? Of course I did! I thought you could use a laugh today. But do you get the moral of the story also? We have opportunities each day and usually very early in the day to allow “the thief” to steal our joy and peace. It is entirely up to us whether or not he is successful. I could have fussed and fumed and stomped and kicked the cat! (And I’m not saying I wasn’t tempted.) But my day would have pretty much been ruined. So, when the enemy comes bringing circumstances the size of elephants, OR fleas…stand up…look up and declare...“Lord, I will not be dismayed!”

PROPHESY TO DRY BONES

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DRY BONES 2

The hand of the LORD was upon 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, “O 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.’ “
Ezekiel 37:1-4

At this time of year children are thinking of what costume they will dress in for what some call Halloween and many Christians call Fall Festival. At any rate, it is the time when stores are filled with skeletons and ghouls and such. As Believers we don’t dwell on the macabre. But there is a wonderful story in the Bible regarding skeletons that is a great story to relate to children or adults in this season.

Ezekiel was a Prophet of God who lived in Old Testament days. The Lord often had the prophets do things that would seem extremely strange to us and probably to the people back then also. If you simply hear something it may or may not make an impression on you. But if you see something, especially something spectacular, you are likely to remember it for a long time. So oftentimes God would have the Prophets give a sort of “over-the-top” object lesson to the Israelites. In this instance, the Lord took Ezekiel to a valley that was filled with human skeletons, the Bible says “dry bones”. Probably it was once a battlefield. Then the Lord asked Ezekiel the strangest of questions. He said, “Ezekiel, can these bones live?” If it had been me I probably would have said, “Of course not, Lord! These people are not only dead, they are fully decayed!” But not Ezekiel! He knew the Lord too well. He said, “Lord, only you know that.” It’s a good thing Ezekiel thought that way because the next thing the Lord said was, “Prophesy to these bones and say, ‘Dry Bones, hear the Word of the Lord. 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!’” The Lord did just what He said He would do and verse ten says, “So I (Ezekiel) prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.” Wow!

The scripture goes on to say that the reason the Lord did this was to restore hope to the House of Israel. They were saying, “We feel like our bones are dried up and all hope is gone. We are captives in a foreign land with no help in sight!” But the Lord told them, “I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land.”

As born again Believers, God gives us that same promise. Do you sometimes feel as if your spirit is a pile of dried bones? Circumstances of life have left you feeling depleted of hope and you’re in desperate need of a fresh infusion from the Spirit of God. You need Him to breathe upon you. Prophesy to your own dry bones and say like David did in the Psalms…

Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad?
I WILL put my hope in God! I will praise him again
—my Savior and my God!
Psalm 43:5 NLT