Come Alive

Life.

To me, life without Christ is just existing. Having a physical body and mind but a soul without Christ is an empty shell.

Our soul aches and longs for the Lord and the Lord alone. We are not complete until we have life in Christ our Lord. There is a void if not filled with the Lord.

I'm not talking about going through the motions. Going to church on Easter and Christmas. Believing that God exists but not caring about what He thinks or His effect on your life.

I'm talking about full on LIFE in the Lord. All in. Believing that the only truth is found in God's Word. Believing that there is ONE true God. Believing that we can't earn goodness, but that righteousness and eternal life is found in believing in a Savior.

I once heard a scripture that has stuck with me for years. It is Ezekiel 37, the Valley of Dry Bones. The scripture is written by the prophet Ezekiel who describes a valley full of dry, dusty, wasting away bones. In the scripture, Ezekiel asks God if the bones can live. God answers Ezekiel by saying:

"Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall LIVE. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall LIVE, and you shall know that I am the Lord." Ezekiel 37:5-6

The scripture goes on to describe the bones beginning to rattle and sinews and flesh covering them but no breath.

"So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army." Ezekiel 37: 10

I can't help but type up the entire rest of the passage, it is just that powerful:

"Then he said to me, 'Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, 'Our bones are dried up and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.' Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I OPEN YOUR GRAVES, and RAISE YOU FROM YOUR GRAVES, O my people. And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord." Ezekiel 37:11-14

I can't help but be astounded every time I read this passage. That we have a Lord who can breath life into the dead. Not just dead, like recently, like a physical body, but so dead that the bones are decaying and dusty. Our God is the one who saves. That is why we can rest easy, knowing that as believers we can pray and share Jesus and do our part but ultimately it is our GOD who saves. It is God and only God who can breath life into the dusty, decaying dead. ME. I was dead in sin. My God saved me.

I love the idea of the "exceedingly great army". That God has set apart His people- those that love Him and obey Him. These people have had life breathed into them. Not just physical life but true life- eternal life, spiritual life. The kind of breathable life that reminds us that there is nothing on Earth that will satisfy the way God will. That reminds us that we have a Creator, a Maker. God breathes life into His chosen, and those become His army. Not just an army, but an exceedingly great one.

I will gladly follow my Lord into any battle. I would gladly give my physical Earthly life for my Lord- easily and willingly knowing that my true life is in my soul, my eternal life.

I love the great mental picture that this passage represents and for this reason it is one of my favorites. Imagining God simply BREATHING. And thousands rise. Flesh attaches to bone. An army arises. It is unbelievable.

Of the army that I have already met, they are amazing. Strong, brave, courageous. Men and women who serve and give and love. They know what world they belong to. They know where value lies. I can't wait to meet more of the army. To one day join the entire army.

But until that day, all I can say is WOW. How can I deserve to go from death to life. I don't. Lord God, I am thankful. And I gladly serve my Lord God each day knowing where my true LIFE comes from.

{Taken at Alyeska Ski Resort, Girdwood, Alaska}

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