GodReflection: Is Grace Still Amazing?

A cemetery must be one of the most revered places on the planet. All graves have one thing in common—dry bones. Never on any visit has the idea crossed my mind to attempt to change old bones from dry and dead to vibrant and alive.

The Old Testament prophet Ezekiel shares a story that is unbelievable in the face of known facts. God shows him a valley filled with dry bones then poses the question, “Can these bones live?”

To look closer at Ezekiel’s story, we find ourselves in chapter thirty-seven. By now God has shown Ezekiel enough wonders and sounds never seen by a mere mortal that Ezekiel gives the Holy Creator what would seem to be a cautious and yet obvious answer to God’s dead bone question:“O Lord GOD, you know.”

At God’s command the prophet begins to prophesy.

Bones start…

More than two decades ago when I was applying to universities, I intentionally sought out strong programs in biomedical engineering. My thought at the time was that a degree in BME would serve me as a stepping stone for medical school.

That turned out to be a terrible, foolish mistake on my part, which led to me being extremely bored, unfulfilled, uninspired, and rudderless for four years; receiving poor grades; and losing my scholarship. There’s much I could write about that fateful decision and its consequences… about my motivations; about my experiences; about what my subsequent academic failure led to… but this is not that post.

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Papa’s take

Papa advised me against biomedical engineering and against the hard sciences in general; he suggested instead that I pursue the humanities. Of course, I was too stubborn to listen to him. In truth, I was a capable student and was taking the…