Dear Ones:
In Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones (Ez. 37), God tells him to speak the word of God to the dry bones. They come together, and sinews and flesh came upon them…”but there was NO breath in them.” (v.8) It is at this point that the Lord commands Ezekiel to “Prophesy unto the wind.”(v.9) As Ezekiel speaks the word of the Lord to the wind, breath comes into those who were dead, and they live, and stand on their feet, “…an exceeding great army.”(v.10) What is this wind? And why MUST it come?
In the Song of Solomon, we read: “…A garden enclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed.” (4:12) Then, there is the directive to the wind, “Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out.” (v.16) It seems that the “garden” possesses a beauty and wonder given it by its Creator, and Beloved. But, it is not until the “wind” blows upon it that the beauty of it is “wafted abroad.”
In Evangelical circles, we are apt to make little of the Spirit of God, especially in the matter of appropriating Him. But we must remember that, “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power.” (Acts. 10:37) What does this tell us? Simply, that it was imperative, and essential to all else, that the Lord Jesus receive the anointing of the Spirit, that blessed Spirit of power. Scripture tells us that WE have received that anointing. (1 Jn. 2:27) So, if we have received the anointing of the Spirit, and the power of the Spirit, why is it that we do not KNOW His working more in our lives? It is very possible that the answer lies in that we have not “spoken to the wind,” “prophesied to the wind,” called upon God for the wind to blow upon the garden of our hearts. You might ask, “If we have the Spirit of God, this anointing, this wind…is it necessary to petition God for the “blowing?
Paul prayed for the Ephesian believers, “…that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him…” (Eph. 1:17) In other words, it is only BY the Spirit that we will have a true vision of Christ and His work. In a second prayer, Paul prays again for the Ephesians, “…(that) the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, …would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man.” (3:14,16) Here the petition is for the Spirit to actively, and actually, strengthen us in our hearts…to believe God, so that Christ may dwell (“…feel perfectly at home…”) in our hearts. We need the anointing in order to SEE, or have a vision of God, but then, we need the power to believe, to appropriate Christ for every need.
So then, today, let us “speak to the wind,” by believing the word of God, and petitioning the Father, that He would move mightily upon our hearts and lives, that the fragrance of Christ would be known. Let us not trust Him for less than His fullness, in order that all of His purposes will be realized in and through us. Remember, when the wind blew (…and we do not need to understand how it will happen…Jn. 3), LIFE, and blessing, was the result.
Love, Dad