Ezekiel was just a young man when he was uprooted and marched off to Babylon. For five years, he saw nothing but despair. But when he was thirty, a vision of God’s glory captivated him, and everything changed. Ezekiel became a priest and prophet. God told him to speak into the lives of the despairing and defiant Israelites so they would know “a prophet has been among them” (Ezekiel 2:5). And they neededto hear from the Lord, because of the horrible way they felt: “Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off” (37:11).

So God took Ezekiel, the prophet and priest, to a valley of dry bones and asked him a faith question: “Son of man, can these bones live?” Ezekiel had the honesty to say, “Sovereign LORD . . . you alone know” (37:3).

Sometimes we look at the landscape of our lives and see only a valley of dry bones. We look at dead dreams, lifeless hopes, and ruined relationships, and with Ezekiel, we wonder, Can these bones live? Can all this really come back to life? Can hope be resurrected? Can all the ruin in my life really be restored? Can God breathe life into these dry bones? We all face times when everything seems dry and dead. We can only summon a weak, “Lord, You alone know the answer.”

God does know the answer to the question your heart asks as you face your dry bones. God is the answer. His love resurrects what seems lost forever. His compassion mercifully breathes life back into what you think may be hopeless. And His promise to us today is, “I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD” (37:6).

Open your spiritual eyes today to see that God, and God alone, can turn your valley of dry bones into a wellspring of hope. Then ask Him to breathe new life into you.