5 This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life.
—The words of God from Ezekiel 37:5
The story of Ezekiel and the Valley of the Dry Bones—the source of the Scripture verse at the beginning of this blog post—has long served as an encouragement for the prayerful pleadings of God’s people when they long for revival.
Revival: a coming to life again.
Over the centuries, whenever God’s people languished because of meager spiritual fare and felt oppressed because of the degradation of the culture in which they lived, these conditions prompted the people to call out to God in prayer.
The great Presbyterian minister of the late 17th and early 18th century, Matthew Henry, explained:
“When God intends great mercy for His people,
He first of all sets them a-praying.”
In 1878 a British scholar of the New Testament Greek language, Edwin Hatch, penned the words to the following poem and published them in an inspirational tract entitled Between Doubt and Prayer. Ten years later, Robert Jackson wrote a tune, Trentham, specifically to set Hatch’s poem to music.
As you read through these words, let your mind imagine the gentle touch of a soft puff of air brushing against your cheek. Imagine the power contained in such a feather-like breath when it comes from the Holy Spirit igniting the fire of revival within the hearts and minds of God’s people.
Breathe on me, breath of God,
Fill me with life anew,
That I may love what Thou dost love,
And do what Thou wouldst do.
Breathe on me, breath of God,
Until my heart is pure,
Until with Thee I will one will,
To do and to endure.
Breathe on me, breath of God,
Blend all my soul with Thine,
Until this earthly part of me
Glows with Thy fire divine.
Breathe on me, breath of God,
So shall I never die,
But live with Thee the perfect life
Of Thine eternity.
Please click here to watch a beautiful video rendition of this hymn by the New Apostolic Church Youth Choir from Capetown, South Africa, taken from a recorded concert performed in 2006.
Will you pray with me?
Thank You, God, for loving us. Thank You for sending Jesus to be our Savior. Thank You for sending us Your Holy Spirit to dwell within us.
Precious Father, the words of this magnificent hymn represent our prayer to You this day. We long for a great outpouring of Your Holy Spirit that will breathe new life into the very core of our beings. We long for another great awakening—a time of revival where Your people will come to life again with renewed energy and vitality and commitment to obediently serving You. We long to be moved by Your Spirit to love You with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength.
We thank You, Precious Father, for hearing our prayer in and through the precious Name of Your Son, our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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