Did you know God already knew our two greatest challenges in life would be money and marriage? Did you know that God never intended these two areas of our life to be a burden, but to be a blessing? Have you ever thought about why these two areas of life are constantly under attack? It’s because the enemy knows that family and finances, marriage and money are the double doors that unlock life abundantly. How do I know…because I have His word on it. The challenge of ministry is marriage and money, the challenge in most homes is marriage and money, the challenge in society is family and finances. These are the two areas that God uses to advance the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven, because both marriage and money multiply!
The answer to marriage and money problems is not to complain, but to proclaim, not our ideas, thoughts, plans, desires, not our way, but His way for He is Yahweh. The problem is obvious and wide spread, but the solution is in our Bible, we just need to take God’s word on it and prophesy. Ezekiel 37 is commonly known in the church as the valley of dry bones, but did you know there are three things Ezekiel was told to prophesy to? God knows what He is doing, and if we will follow His order, we will find we get His answers to our questions, struggles, situations. The three things in Ezekiel 37 that he was commanded to prophesy to, was, one the bones, two the breath and three the people.
1. Prophesy to the bones and say hear the word of the Lord (v.4-6). This is what I am doing to you, hear the word of the Lord, and you need to speak to your bones, hear the word of the Lord. Did you know bones are two-fold? Bones in Hebrew means both substance and self. Which brings us to the Genesis 2 connection, in Genesis 2, Adam says, you are bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh…we need to prophesy to our bones and to our spouse, who is bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh and say, hear the word of the Lord. This is the first prophesy, proclamation we need to speak in prayer. Prophesy to your bones, both substance and self.
2. Prophesy to the breath and say, come from the four winds and breath upon these slain (v.9). The slain are those who have marriages that are lying in the dust, they are not alive, they are barren, lifeless, without joy, without communication, without breath. Selfishness is what makes us slain, we need breath to come into us. Prophesy to the four winds, call for the breath of God to come in from all directions and breathe life into your finances and into your marriage, prophesy. Finances like marriage dies because of selfishness, spending more than we have kills our finances, thinking of ourselves and our needs is what kills our marriage. Many marriages and many people’s money is slain, but God said, take my word on it, prophesy to the breath. Again, the Genesis 2 connection, God breathed into the nostrils of the dust man (Adam) and made him into a living being. The breath of God is what causes us to come alive, prophesy to the breath!
3. Prophesy to the people and say, come up out of your graves and let God bring you into the land (v.12-14). The result of prophesying to the people to come out of their graves (grief, exile) is that they become a mighty army. Did you know that word army in Hebrew means resources, wealth, might, power, riches, substance, a force of resources? When we prophesy as the Lord tells us to prophesy in Ezekiel 37, our money and marriage comes alive, our family and finances multiply. Again, the Genesis 2 connection, did not God tell them to be fruitful and multiply? Once they were alive, once they had breath in them, their natural next step was to multiply.
The reason we do not multiply is because we do not prophesy God’s word. Many people are giving prophetic words, but very few are saying what God is saying. How do I know? One because most of their prophecy is commentary on what God actually said, and two because very few prophetic words have a verse on it. Meaning, without stretching the word of God, you can’t see the source of it in scripture. Ezekiel was famous for addressing the vain prophecies that said what you wanted to hear. But, that does not mean we do not prophesy, we just must take God’s word on it and prophesy. I encourage you to read Ezekiel 37 and Genesis 2 and see the connections between the two and then take God’s word and prophesy to those three things, the bones, the breath and the people. In prophesying God’s word, you are going to see God’s results and your marriage and money are going to multiply, because you are taking His word on it and prophesying!
Lisa Great 