The other day amongst sushi rolls and bento boxes, a close friend and I conversed over our recent spiritual journeys or perhaps lack there of. Sitting here now it is funny to me how egocentric I can be as it relates to my own personal journey of holiness. Because surely I am alone, drudging my way through this vast wasteland of spiritual isolation wandering aimlessly as a blind man. And yet there we sat side by side, wind blown from days in the desert, our faces chaffed from being beaten by the sun and blowing sand. Our lips cracked and bleeding repelling any desire to speak. Yet not alone….not remotely alone.
Perhaps it was a shift in the gusting winds that began to change the formation of this desert I found myself in, but with each gust a dune was removed and a fellow journeyman was revealed. A hurting soul in need of counsel, a wanderer eternally lost with no compass, a warrior paralyzed with fear. Each one in search of “Living Water”.
Without questions there are vast spiritual deserts we can find ourselves in while living life. Some much more desolate and deadly than others. Some we are driven into resulting from circumstances well beyond our control. Yet in common they all are isolating, lifeless, spiritually dehydrating, PLACES OF GROWTH.
It’s all too easy to associate a feeling with our spiritual walk, much like we do with love. Yet our Lord command us to Love Him with “all of our heart, soul, and mind”. Not “Love me if and when you feel like loving me”. I believe it is our time in the desert that sifts through the baggage of emotion and roots out our commitment to Love Him, or red flags our Love of CONVENIENCE.
So I suppose my desert was one of work rather than joy. Much like my athletic career, there were many times I had no desire to practice or train, but it was the commitment to success that drove me to grind through. And so my commitment to loving Him forces me to grind through His word daily and commit to Him my struggle of joy. For He is our source of living water. Water that will bring us up out of the mire of our desert and into joyful fellowship with Him.
Rev. 7:17
For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."
Perhaps it was a shift in the gusting winds that began to change the formation of this desert I found myself in, but with each gust a dune was removed and a fellow journeyman was revealed. A hurting soul in need of counsel, a wanderer eternally lost with no compass, a warrior paralyzed with fear. Each one in search of “Living Water”.
Without questions there are vast spiritual deserts we can find ourselves in while living life. Some much more desolate and deadly than others. Some we are driven into resulting from circumstances well beyond our control. Yet in common they all are isolating, lifeless, spiritually dehydrating, PLACES OF GROWTH.
It’s all too easy to associate a feeling with our spiritual walk, much like we do with love. Yet our Lord command us to Love Him with “all of our heart, soul, and mind”. Not “Love me if and when you feel like loving me”. I believe it is our time in the desert that sifts through the baggage of emotion and roots out our commitment to Love Him, or red flags our Love of CONVENIENCE.
So I suppose my desert was one of work rather than joy. Much like my athletic career, there were many times I had no desire to practice or train, but it was the commitment to success that drove me to grind through. And so my commitment to loving Him forces me to grind through His word daily and commit to Him my struggle of joy. For He is our source of living water. Water that will bring us up out of the mire of our desert and into joyful fellowship with Him.
Rev. 7:17
For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."
"If your vision is for a year, plant wheat. If your vision is for ten years, plant trees. If your vision is for a lifetime, plant people." 
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5 comments:
Very insightful post. To be alone in the dessert is one of the worst places to be when you are there but possibly one of the best experiences when you look back on it. I agree with your emphasis to committment over emotion...a very demanding lesson.
i think we are only in a desert alone because we choose it. God desires us to bear our burdens with one another. so when we feel he's not there, that maybe he's silent for a time, we can lean on one another to get support, to push us to keep going. never to replace HIM but to reveal HIM through relationship. that's one lesson i've definately learned in my short life. surround yourself with Godly people that you can trust with your deepest secrets and you'll never face that desert alone.
Just as in business, parenting, or any other activity that is worth doing, consistency and determination prove to be the most essential components for success. Neither of these require that we have mentors, partners, friends, or even companions to succeed, but the journey is easier when we do.
Yes we have ALL experienced our own deserts at least one time in our lives. I think when The Lord leads us there he wants to communicate with us...while not always 'comfortable' I believe they are at times necessary. Like Jeff just preached last week: when we are in our hardest times, it's generally the 'quickest' way to him. Something like that.
My desert experiences have seemed lonely because I'm not hearing from God. Why is He sometimes silent for months? I did not get an answer. Maybe that was my answer...He doesn't owe me an explanation....I must just keep trusting when nothing feels like it. That was my lesson and I'm at peace with it.
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