“Why
did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or
figs, no grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water to drink!” – Numbers
20:5
God is my Good Shepherd. I can
trust Him to lead me. These words are what we want to say, but we do not
always believe. It is hard sometimes because we may find that we have to go into the desert.
There is a time for everything,
even time in the desert. In the Israelites’ case, they were there because they
doubted God. They doubted His ability to bring them into the Promised Land and
the unbelieving generation had to die before anyone could enter the Promised
Land.
Maybe in your own life you are headed to a desert or are already there and you wonder why. There
is a reason God brings people to the desert. It may be because of disobedience.
It may be He has something to teach them. It may be to humble them or it may be
that people need to give up something and refocus on God. It may be to grow them and strengthen their character and faith. It may be to draw them closer to the King of kings.
God always has the best in mind. It requires trust on our part because we cannot read His mind. But He knows ours. He knows what we need before we even know. He knows what is best in the long run. Like a father that does not let his child eat cake for every meal because he knows what his child needs even if it contradicts what the child wants, so God knows what is best. This is where trust must be. Without trust, there is anger and confusion because we think we know exactly what is best.
What we think is best is a life without pain and suffering, a life free of heartache, a life without any deserts. What if God thinks differently? What if God knows there is something better? What if God in all His wisdom and love for His children knows that the desert is necessary for something greater?
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"In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith--more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire--may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls." 1 Peter 1:6-9
The result of the testing? Faith. Trust in God. Trust that pleases God. Trust that God keeps His promises. Trust that God is good. Trust that God gives Salvation.
It is in trials that one knows what hope is.
It is not until reaching the other side that the importance of testing is seen.
In recounting what God has done, Psalm 66:5-12 tells of the good and the bad
and the ultimate result of one of the Israelites' times of testing.
"For you, God, tested us; you refined us like silver.
You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs.
You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water,
but you brought us to a place of abundance." (v 10-12)
God always has the best in mind. It requires trust on our part because we cannot read His mind. But He knows ours. He knows what we need before we even know. He knows what is best in the long run. Like a father that does not let his child eat cake for every meal because he knows what his child needs even if it contradicts what the child wants, so God knows what is best. This is where trust must be. Without trust, there is anger and confusion because we think we know exactly what is best.
What we think is best is a life without pain and suffering, a life free of heartache, a life without any deserts. What if God thinks differently? What if God knows there is something better? What if God in all His wisdom and love for His children knows that the desert is necessary for something greater?
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"In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith--more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire--may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls." 1 Peter 1:6-9
The result of the testing? Faith. Trust in God. Trust that pleases God. Trust that God keeps His promises. Trust that God is good. Trust that God gives Salvation.
It is in trials that one knows what hope is.
It is not until reaching the other side that the importance of testing is seen.
In recounting what God has done, Psalm 66:5-12 tells of the good and the bad
and the ultimate result of one of the Israelites' times of testing.
"For you, God, tested us; you refined us like silver.
You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs.
You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water,
but you brought us to a place of abundance." (v 10-12)
Another passage about testing is found in Isaiah. Isaiah 48 is about Israel being rebellious and God's warning to straighten them out. In verse 10 it says,
“Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.”
This is the desert of purification. The purpose of the desert is to cleanse. God does not lead us to a desert because He enjoys suffering. He leads us to the desert because the outcome is far more important than our comfort, far greater in the long run, far better than we can imagine at the moment.
Read again the end of verse 12 in Psalm 66.
“…we went through fire and water,
but you brought us to a place of abundance.”
God tested the Israelites and they came out to a place of abundance.
What was this abundance? The promised land. What is our promised land? God has made us many promises. The most important being salvation -the Ultimate rest from striving and sin. This is the beginning of our abundance.
Jesus said, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly"(John 10:10).
Jesus never promised a life without hardship or pain, but He did promise us a life of abundant living. That means no matter what hardship we face God will get us through it!
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“Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.”
This is the desert of purification. The purpose of the desert is to cleanse. God does not lead us to a desert because He enjoys suffering. He leads us to the desert because the outcome is far more important than our comfort, far greater in the long run, far better than we can imagine at the moment.
Read again the end of verse 12 in Psalm 66.
“…we went through fire and water,
but you brought us to a place of abundance.”
God tested the Israelites and they came out to a place of abundance.
What was this abundance? The promised land. What is our promised land? God has made us many promises. The most important being salvation -the Ultimate rest from striving and sin. This is the beginning of our abundance.
Jesus said, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly"(John 10:10).
Jesus never promised a life without hardship or pain, but He did promise us a life of abundant living. That means no matter what hardship we face God will get us through it!
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When you find yourself in a desert
you can either complain because it is not where you want to be and not what you
want to feel, or you can choose to trust God. Trust that He is not making a
mistake in taking you to the desert, and trust that He can provide for your
needs and satisfy your thirst, even in a difficult situation. He is merciful and will not forsake you even in your time in the desert. While the
Israelites were in the desert, God provided them with manna (Ps 78:15 Ex16:35) and kept their
clothes from wearing out
(Deut. 8:4),
and if you look back at Isaiah 48 it says in verse 21
They did not thirst when He led them through the deserts.
He made the water flow out of the rock for them;
He split the rock and the water gushed forth.
Even though God led His precious children to the desert, He did not leave them.
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They did not thirst when He led them through the deserts.
He made the water flow out of the rock for them;
He split the rock and the water gushed forth.
Even though God led His precious children to the desert, He did not leave them.
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I don’t know if you’re in a place
or circumstance you do not want to be in. I know I have been. Asking why
didn’t change anything. My attitude needed to change from complaining to
trusting God and asking Him to provide while I was in the desert and asking also what needed to be done during the time in the
desert. No matter how long it is, I want to please God and be yielded to what
He wants to accomplish in my life.
I cannot tell you why you are where
you are. I do know that if you ask God you can find out what He wants you to do
while you are there. I also know that He is more than capable of providing for you and getting you through the desert to the place of abundance.
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If the focus of
life is happiness then the desert will not make sense, but if the focus is
something greater, something more valuable, then the desert of
purification makes sense.
"If you think of this world as a place intended simply for our happiness, you find it quite intolerable; think of it as a place of training and correction and it's not so bad."
-C.S. Lewis
"If you think of this world as a place intended simply for our happiness, you find it quite intolerable; think of it as a place of training and correction and it's not so bad."
-C.S. Lewis
Ultimately
God is more interested in building our character during our time here than our momentary
happiness. We are promised an eternity of happiness, but
right now character should take precedence. There are so many blessings we will experience both now and later when we live trusting in God.
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