In our last blog we discovered that God’s presence and not preferable circumstances brings us to a better version of ourselves. We all have choices we can make in our own desert place that will help us deepen our trust.
Trusting God in the midst of our fears
God directed Abram to leave his home and everything familiar to him to go to a land he had never seen before and there he we would give birth to a new nation (Gen 12:1-4). Over the centuries God proved Himself trustworthy to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and as promised God delivered the Hebrews from Egypt. All along the difficult and fearful wilderness journey God promised the Israelis that He would be with them despite what things looked like.
All throughout the scriptures we see a pattern of people trusting God in the midst of their profound fears whether it was in the wilderness, Joshua taking the Israelis in the land of Canaan or Jesus facing the cross. Peace doesn’t come from a life without trials it comes from trusting God in midst of them. There is no app for suffering.
We learn to trust God when we are beyond our own resources. In that deep place we can develop our trust in who God is and what he does, to trust his word and his proven character. When we choose to trust God in the midst of unfair circumstances or our own poor choices it’s about who we are becoming while we follow him. Like Israel, we all have choices to make on our journey.
Choose wisely
It sounds good that time heals all wounds, but not necessarily. Yes, time can heal some, but for others time can develop into a bitter and caustic heart posture. The kind of choices we make today can determine who we will become. Many times we don’t get to choose what happens to us but, we do get to choose how we will respond while were in the desert place.
Our deserts are most likely not geographical, but God wants us to grasp His all sufficient resources in our spiritual, emotional and relational deserts. The kind of choices we make today can determine who we will become. We all have choices, we can choose to languish or flourish.
Some have making the same kind of choices for so long it doesn’t seem like they have a choice any more. Where does my heart go when things are falling apart? How I live that answer out will determine what kind of person I’m becoming. There are three ways my heart can respond:
1) I don’t need this. I don’t deserve this. Anybody but me needs to go through this.
2) I’m tired of it after all I’ve been through. Although understandable, I’m afraid it lends itself to self- pity than growth.
With this heart posture some go out and get retail therapy or other forms of self-medication. Temporary fixes at best. Just one more drink, just one more…Some run, others pretend, while some…
3) Accept their time in the desert.
What if your time in the desert is where God can develop the thing you need the most? What if your season of difficulty and confusion would produce a deeper trust in God?
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James1:2-4
Caleb witnessed Israel’s forty years of wilderness wanderings first hand. Unlike most of his peers Caleb had a teachable heart. He didn’t run from or fall victim to his desert place or fight it, but instead trusted God’s divine sovereignty that He had everything in control. He trusted that God would fulfill His promises. Joshua 14:9-12
When you trust God and make wise choices in your desert place you will experience what God desires for you.
