“Can These Bones Live?”

I love old horror films; one of my favorites is “The House on Haunted Hill.”

I recently came across a still image of its leading lady, tapped on the shoulder by a skeleton. 

And for me, whether it be this Halloween season, or just the triggering imagery, for those of us dealing with disordered image and eating issues, skeletons, indeed, represent death- and hopelessness- looming large.

“Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron.”

Psalms 107:10

During my young adulthood, as I battled with disordered eating and image issues, I was engulfed in despair. I believed if I could starve myself enough, eventually, my emaciation would be its own successful suicide. I saw no hope and no purpose to who I was.

“God, just let me die. Don’t let me make it to age 20.”

That was once my daily prayer. But, no matter how thin or close to death I became, there was no peace, only further anxiety and dread.

Adding to the already bleak picture was the brutal realization that being thin would not fix everything or cause all of my pain to stop; it was then when the skeletons became only painful reminders.

I felt I could not win. I was destined to be haunted: by my desires, by my fears, by my failures, by my seemingly, purpose-less life.

“For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he...”

Proverbs 23:7

It’s taken me years to come from a place of only seeing hopelessness as I pursued my own skeletal image goals and death wish mentality. My paradigm shift from death, to recovery, to hope and therefore, finally, to life could not happen without The Most High.

I had a revelation about bones. Ezekiel changed my life and my viewpoint about hopelessness.

“The hand of the LORD was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live... So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together... And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live… then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD…”

Ezekiel 37:1-15

Yes, for those of us in the grips of eating disorders, the enormity of despair is constantly with us, especially as we obsess about and chase death, be it our actual death, or the look of it, best exemplified by a skeleton.

But there can be another option, should we choose it…

“I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.”

Deuteronomy 30:19

I find it interesting how, my own destructive performance-based love and worth beliefs drove me to earn results, yet deny Elohim’s willingness and ability to help me. As much as I was striving, working, trying and pursuing, I could not grab ahold of the truth that it was me who was rendering myself helpless, not The Most High. He, in fact, takes a much different approach…

“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go: I will guide you with My eye.”

Psalm 32:8

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed... I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”

Isaiah 41:10

And this approach, through a connected relationship with The Almighty, a support network, a loving husband and time itself, in process, has shown me how the very thing which once threatened my life can be used to save life.

“But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in Elohim which raiseth the dead.”

2 Corinthians 1:9

Being released from the prison of secrecy, shame and self-inflicted helplessness has opened viable, free and healing bones to spring forth. Now, I don’t see skeletons; I see possibility from the bleakest appearance of things.

 “So then death worketh in us, but life in you.”

2 Corinthians 4:12

And you can see this also. It’s beyond any disorder, addiction or compulsion. It has to do with allowing our Creator to speak to- and work in- your bones, your life, your very being.

Are you wondering if your own bones can live? The answer to your question is “yes, they can.”

Ask Ezekiel.

Copyright © 2018 by Sheryle Cruse