His dust-caked feet ache from traveling long miles, his shoulders sag under a heavy pack. Even the cattle balk, and the sheep lay down in the midday sun.
“Get them up. They’ll die if we stop here now,” he commands his eldest.
“Abba, can I have some water?”
He checks the gourds to stall giving the answer he already knows. They clank with a hollow shout. He finds his son’s expectant eyes and shakes his head.
“I’ll ask around. See if I can find you and your sister something to drink.” His eyes blur, but not from tears. There are no tears when you haven’t touched liquid for nearly two days. He saved the last drops for his children to drink this morning. And he knows it’s the same for every other family and creature on this insane trek through the desert.
The Israelites were no strangers to hard work and distress, but this? This was too much. They’d been promised freedom and deliverance. This felt a whole lot more like misery and death.
Can you feel it? Can you relate to it?
We’re about to embark on a journey through the pages of scripture together, walking with not only the Israelite nation, but also with beloved figures such as Abraham, Elijah, Naomi, and even Jesus. We’ll peer in on the times of frustration, doubt, grief, and testing in their own wilderness experiences. And, hopefully, we’ll discover the answers to these subversive questions: Was the wilderness experience a necessary part of their sanctification and preparation? Is it intended to be part of yours?
“Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”
Deuteronomy 8:2-3
Day 1
One thing you must decide at the outset of this excursion, is who is in charge of your journey? Who is pointing to the next destination on the map? Who is laying the path for your steps?
Our great temptation is to believe that we are. We plan our route, pack our suitcase, and even get travel insurance just to cover the unexpected. We humans like to play god. It’s been that way since the beginning: “…when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,” seduces the serpent in Genesis 3:5. So we take the bait, eat the fruit, and believe that we possess all the wisdom needed to navigate this life successfully.
But the trouble comes when the trouble comes. Suddenly, we have to choose. Did we get ourselves into this mess? And a whole heap of shame and self-loathing pounds at the door if we did. Or did God get us into this? And a terrible struggle between reconciling God’s goodness with our reality breaks out within.
Unless we believe Jesus when he said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
Difficulty is part of the package. While we live on this sin-broken planet, we will face trials of many kinds. (James 1:2-5)
And it would seem that the wilderness–of pain or disappointment, barrenness or doubt, transition or grief–will be part of your story.
Here’s the beauty of it, though: the wilderness is not meant for your crushing. It’s meant to create a deep hunger and thirst for God alone. And it’s no accident. In fact, the Hebrew word for wilderness is midbar, which comes from a root word meaning “to drive”, as in guiding sheep out to pasture. It’s occasionally even translated to mean mouth or speech.
If sheep are being driven out to midbar, it’s certainly not because the shepherd is just hoping for a good laugh at their agony. No, the good shepherd cares for His sheep, protects His sheep, and most definitely knows where He is leading His sheep. (See Psalm 23 and John 10)
Here is a video to help make the desert experience of the Bible feel a little more near to you:
“Walking With God in the Desert” by Ray Vanderlaan
Respond
How do you feel about the idea that God leads his people–leads you–to the wilderness?
Read
Wonder
What questions do these verses stir in you?
Worship
How do you see God’s character revealed?
Walk it out
Where does it connect with your life? How can it help you walk closer to God?
1 Comment
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