Old, Dry Bones Is Not The End

[S] Ezekiel 37:11 --
 ¹¹ Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones represent the people of Israel. They are saying, ‘We have become old, dry bones—all hope is gone. Our nation is finished.

[O] This explanation of the dry bones being put together to an exceedingly great army describes how God desires to be our hope especially when we're up against detrimental situations of shattered dreams.  After the Israelites rebelled far away from God's ways and ended up in the exact condition God warned them -- nation like old, dry bones without any hope -- God still provides hope through Ezekiel about how God wants to put His Spirit and bring life back to His people so that they would declare His as their God.  This well-known "dry bones" passage is nothing other than God's pursuing us to give us the life that we don't deserve in order that His name would be raised up by His people.

[A] My heart is very much humbled before God's unending love to pursue even when I would totally mess up.  This is the type of a God I'm serving.  Whatever I do, especially in the name of doing His ministry, I need to stay totally humble because I don't deserve any of credit (which my heart desires to gain).  Additionally, as a father to my children, I need to learn more about what it means to exercise such an unending love toward them not based on their achievements but so that they would one day truly recognize the love of God that passes to them through me.

[P] Dear God, may I continue focus my eyes on You and especially as a father teach me to shepherd their hearts  patiently waiting for them reach the point of recognizing the amazing love of God reaching to them through their parents regardless of what courses of life they may go through.  In the end may it be You who shine through their lives; and may I be the one who would influence them to reach that place sooner than later.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.