Is there hope in the Valley?

Hello my fellow readers, hope you are doing well? I had a few thoughts  on my mind that I wish to share with you. I am sure the title of the post has you wondering what this young lady is going to talk about today. Let's satisfy all curiosity and get straight into the Word!

The bible story that I am focusing on today is quite familiar to everyone, its coming straight out of Ezekiel 37:1-14. This is when the Lord took the Prophet Ezekiel into the valley of dry bones, he speaks of the miracle that he witnessed when the bones came together and rose up. This story is mostly used in sermons to depict to us the power  of our words, especially when it is backed by the Spirit of God. This story spoke to me in an entirely different way, the Holy Spirit made me focus closely on the location of the miracle and not just the subjects of it.

The word says in Ezekiel 37 verse 1-2: "The Lord took hold of me, and I was carried away by the Spirit of the Lord to a valley filled with bones. 2 He led me all around among the bones that covered the valley floor. They were scattered everywhere across the ground and were completely dried out."

When I read these first two verses, I wondered why God chose to take the man of God to the valley. Before I go any further, let's  remind ourselves of what a valley is. National Geographic defines a valleys as "depressed areas of land–scoured and washed out by the conspiring forces of gravity, water, and ice. Some hang; others are hollow. They all take the form of a "U" or "V." It is a very interesting definition of a valley, this is to say that they are found in lowlands.

When I looked back at the scriptures, I found the use of the valley to be quite significant. God used this miracle to show that He was still working on behalf of the people even in their lowest point and the valley depicts the lowest point of their lives. Normally we should find water in a valley but the scriptures says that there was just dry bones scattered in the valley which shows that there no sign of life at all. I am sure we can all attest of the fact that we have been in positions where things seem rather hopeless and uncomfortable. We all go through tough moments! The first lesson that we can take from Ezekiel 37 is that God would allow you to experience the lowest points in life to see how He draws out miracles from that very place that you called hopeless or unworthy. He does not need a perfect situation or person to create perfect miracles but rather an imperfect place to showcase His glory and increase your faith!

Ezekiel did not expect the Lord to send to such a place but he was ever ready to learn whatever the Lord wanted to teach him. God could have put everything together and shown Ezekiel the finished works but God chose to rather show him the process and let him know that He had a role to play. Sometimes when we find ourselves in a desolate place, I mean there is simply no indication of a miracle, we just pray for God to jump in and clean it all up. I mean its wonderful that we pray to God for Him to guide us through tough journey but have you ever asked God, what part you had to play to make things work? Before God can begin to work on our issues, He needs to know that we have a ready and willing heart to do as He will require of us! The truth is that its not every change you will find comfortable and you will need a truck load of faith. This kind of faith is not based on your own perception but on the word  of God. Now when the man of God stood before these dry bones, the Lord asked him an interesting question in verse 3, He asked " Son of Man, can these bones become living people again?".

God could have just gone ahead with whatever had to be done but He needed to ask Ezekiel if he had faith in whatever he was about to do. We spend asking God for things, and honestly we end up having a tall list and there is nothing wrong with that but is your level of faith greater than your wish list? Are you strengthening your faith? Where does your affirmation come from? When we study the ministry of Jesus, we notice that He had moments where he would ask the people if they believed in whatever they are asking for. God believes in you, He believes in your ability to have all things and do all things according to His will but the most important part of all this is that He needs you to believe. He needs you to believe in that vision or dream, know that it will work to a successful end, even if there is no sign of life or hope coming from anywhere. He needs you to believe that the ray of sunshine is here and it can never be taken away:

Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen.You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.”- Matthew 21:21-22

Now the Lord commands Ezekiel in verse 5 and 6 to speak to the dry bones and command them to come alive. This is what He said:

‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord! 5 This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look! I am going to put breath into you and make you live again! 6 I will put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord'

First thing to note about this encounter is that Ezekiel spoke to the situation as led by the Lord. He did not just use his thoughts or views on the matter to approach the issue. He told the Lord that only He knew the answer to the question as to whether the bones would live or not? Ezekiel's acknowledgment of God's knowledge on the matter gave way for the Lord to minister the solution to the situation. Are you relying on God for all the answers you need? Are you declaring God's word over your circumstances or your own opinions? How we approach issues is very important as they determine the outcome....

Watch out for Part 2 tomorrow as we delve deeper into Ezekiel 37 verse 1- 14!