Them Dry Bones 1/17/2021

 Good Morning,

The Sunday morning ritual began awhile ago. Soft music, hot Door County Blueberry Cobbler Coffee and the fireplace alive with crackling hardwood logs. This is nice. It is time to write.

Tonight my wife Rene and I will be dining on some dry rubbed baby back ribs. The process of rubbing those ribs down with seasoning and then placing them back into the refrigerator for 8 hours got me to thinking. Within that pan there is the potential for a great meal. Later today they will be slow cooked in the smoker for three hours. They will receive more seasoning after the three hours of heat and then cooked for another hour before they hit the table and finally they will be useful. I use a seasoning I trust to produce the best rib results. 

My thinking took me to some Scripture passages. In Ezekiel we read how God took the prophet to a valley full of dry bones and asked him if the bones could live. Later the bones were reunited with flesh and life after God breathed life into them.

Ezekiel 37:1-3  The hand of the Lord came upon me and brought me out in the Spirit Of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones. 2. Then he caused me to pass by them all around, and behold, there were many in the open valley, and indeed they were very dry. 3. And He said to me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" So I answered, "O Lord God You know."

The ribs in our smoker needed seasoning, time, and heat to become useful to us tonight. I look at the world today and I see lots of dry bones. I see people who have just let their faith wither and are content with just attending church or not attend at all. They allow political opinions to stimulate their hate for others and are quick to, to be blunt, be rude, selfish and demeaning to others. Their spiritual lives are dry and have no seasoning anymore. There needs to be a fresh wind of faith to blow through this land, where people can disagree but yet see the point of the other side. There needs to be a fresh wind of faith to cause once vibrant, caring people to care and serve others again. The fresh wind does not track time and when it calls you to be kind, show compassion, and put others first it doesn't give you stop and start time.

This fresh wind is Jesus Christ and a fresh revival of faith that produces selfless love is what will get the dry bones of uselessness, lack of compassion full of the decay of selfishness to move and be the people we can and should be. 

John 14:6 Jesus answered," I am the Way, the Truth, and the life. No man comes unto the Father except through Me."

Jesus is the One who can reignite a faith that flounders and restore life to the dry bones of your life. He is the seasoning, of faith, hope, and love. Will you respond to His call and come alive once more?

Marty.