Son of man, can these bones live?
In the 37th chapter of the book of Ezekiel, God takes the prophet to a valley covered in mounds of dry bones. He takes Ezekiel by the hand ‘back and forth among them,’ so he can see the magnitude of the death and decay up close, over and over. And only then does God ask the question. Can these–even these, all of these–bones live?
In this season, it’s not our bones but our spirits that feel dried out and full of death. We’ve been living with the fear and rage of this pandemic for so long. Our hearts break for the suffering of lives devastated by fires, floods, earthquakes and wars. Our hope is crushed by the power and pervasiveness of systemic racism and the feebleness and futility of our attempts at healing and reconciliation.
Can the bones in that valley–after all that time dessicated by death–live again?
Can our spirits in this season–crushed by sin, despair, fear and death–be full of holy life again?
Our prophet brother Ezekiel knew that this is not a question for us humans. His answer was really a question. ‘Sovereign God, you alone know.’
The God who re-membered those bones is the same God who re-members our spirits. Listen and hear why we, especially now, have reason to hope.
Peace,
Pastor Kate
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