I recently put a bundle of quince tree branches in my kitchen. This beautiful, architectural plant has bare branches that begin to sprout delicate blooms and then leafy buds. When I got the branches, there were already a few blooms on them, and I expected the branches to bloom about a week longer. Three weeks later now, my quince branches are still blooming. As this bare wood resiliently blooms, I am reminded of how God brings bare places in my life back to life. It is who he is and what he does.
Dead or Dormant?
In the book of Ezekiel, the Lord tells his prophet all the ways that he is going to restore Israel for his own glory. Cities will be “inhabited” and “waste places shall be rebuilt” (Ezek. 36:33). Even the land that was described as “desolate” will “become like the garden of Eden” (36:35). A place that lacked life becomes flourishing for God’s glory. Ezekiel’s prophecy continues in the middle of a valley filled with dry bones. These bones are described as “very many” and “very dry” (37:2). God asks Ezekiel, “‘Son of man, can these bones live?’ ”to which Ezekiel replies, “‘O Lord God, you know’ ” (37:3).
As I raise my children, there are places that feel like valleys of dry bones or like those bare branches of quince. I don’t see where any life or growth is going to happen. Whether I am frustrated with my sinful self or wondering if my child will mature, the bare, dry places plant seeds of doubt about what is possible.
But Ezekiel replies with the possibility and power of the Lord, “O Lord God, you know.” Ezekiel is told to prophesy over the bones. “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” (Ezek. 37:5-6). Sure enough, the bones come alive (37:7-9).
The whole Bible, from creation to the cross, is God’s story of restoration. Through Adam and Eve’s disobedience, sin entered our world mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We have glimpses of Eden, only to be returned to a world that is just not quite right. But in God’s goodness and grace, he sent his own Son, Jesus, to live a perfect life in a broken world, dying the death that we deserved, and receiving the wrath that we should have felt.
And there we find the ultimate resurrection story. Dead. Buried. For three days. Could there have been a more dry and desolate situation? The Messiah that they had hoped for was now lying in a tomb. Yet, when Jesus’ followers came to his tomb, they found it opened and empty. In Luke 24:5, two angels in the tomb asks these women, “‘Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.’”
With Jesus’ resurrection, death was defeated. Sin does not have the final say on the brokenness in our lives. We will have victory in Jesus, if not on this side of heaven, then eternally. We have a promise that gives hope to each and every dry place in our lives. God wants us to look more like him, as a child should reflect her parent, and that often happens in situations that are hard and challenging.
Finding our Promising Dry Branches
Where are the dry places in your own life? Where do you wonder if God can redeem that situation or relationship? As we get older, our relationships with siblings, parents, in-laws, a spouse, children, and friends may shift. What once felt like an easy relationship might feel treacherous or even lifeless. Confess these to the Lord, remembering that the same God, whose whole plan is the restoration of his people, cares for you and loves you.
Where are the dry places in your children’s lives? Where do you wonder if God can redeem that difficult place? Are your children’s relationships difficult at school? Are they rebelling against all that you taught them? As our children get older, they take more responsibility for their own faith, another area where we must learn to let go and trust the Lord. Remember that our children are a gift that ultimately belong to God, and while our love for them is great, his is infinite.
Ask God to remind you of when he restored hopeless situations in your own life. Where was God’s presence felt in the midst of a storm or struggle? Remember that our own stories of coming to faith in Christ are stories of death to life. We all looked like hopeless dead branches. But even when we have lost hope for ourselves or our loved ones, God has not lost sight of his hope for us. When we find ourselves not knowing or understanding how our circumstance might be redeemed, Ezekiel’s words give us hope in who God is: “O Lord God, you know.”
Pray Patiently for Blooms
Bringing that seed of hope, laying it in the fertile ground of God’s Word, and trusting that he will grow something out of it, is an act of faith. The new growth, or life, might not be a flower. It might just be a single leaf, but God will give growth where it is needed and within his perfect plan. I might covet quick growth, but God deems to grow us exactly when and how is best. Restoration may be slow, but Jesus died for me and for my children. He can be trusted.
As we look around at bare winter branches beginning to turn green, let it remind us what God can and will do. He is constantly seeking to regenerate, redeem, and restore a broken world, and it begins in our own hearts.
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