Can These Bones Live?

This famous question came in Ezekiel 37:3.  The prophet did not reply with an answer he thought the Lord might want to hear.  I suspect faith sounding words that are actually not grounded in true faith delays God's plans rather than expediting them.  Ezekiel wasn't about to speak to his all knowing God in presumption.  He humbly said, "O Lord God, You know."  Shallow words of arrogance and ignorance ring so weak.  Yet, we probably all have spoken our share.  I know I have.  Even as swelling religious words leave our lips they fall to the ground.  Yet, words spoken in faith from our spirit man, birthed by the Holy Spirit, can bring about dry bones coming to life.  I have spoken words of faith to individuals before and I could see the power of the words from God find it's target like an arrow to the heart.  It brought healing or at times conviction but always had as its motivation healing and restoration.  Often I was more surprised than they were and thought, "where  did that come from?!"

We need to be careful that we aren't too quick to always know the right answer.  I have spent my adult life as a pastor/counselor giving answers every day.  I try to give counsel rooted in Scripture without being too directional. Speaking for God is always a very weighty matter.  I was in a meeting many years ago when an immature but rather famous man was asked if God would heal a specific physical need in a lady present.  He boastfully cried out over the microphone, "if He doesn't He's a liar!"  I will never forget the cold chill that went through me.  Why?  Because while I believe God is a healing God I don't ever know for certain if a person will be healed.  There are so many things behind the scenes of which we are unaware.  We like to think and we even preach, that there are certain steps to releasing God's power to heal, bring prosperity or repair relationships.  Yet, we must never take the final answer from God's hands.  When we plant a crop, we do all we can do in plowing, planting and nurturing.  Yet, we must wait in faith.  It is beyond our control.  God is always at work far beyond our understanding.  We must walk in faith but we must never stop looking to the Lord with a heart that says, "Lord, you know!"