desert

One of the great heroes in the Bible is king David. In these times of uncertainty, challenge, and economic storms, we desperately need role models worth following. When you read the story of David, you don't see a perfect person, but a person who was "after God's own heart." This past week I have been following and looking at the life of David through our devotional guide found on the front page of the New Vintage Church web site (devotions). The last couple of days I was reading through the story of how David was run out of town by his son who took over the kingdom. Running again in the desert. Hiding. Surviving. This reminded me of Deuteronomy 8:2: "and you shall remember all the way which the Lord your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not." Wow. That is huge. God allows us to go through desert experiences to test what is really in our hearts. To "humble" us which means to have a teachable spirit and the desert is the place where we discover our true loyalty.

I hate going to the desert though. It's so unconfortable. Nevertheless, our spiritual growth has so much to do with desert experiences. When we avoid the desert, we avoid growth. We as Americans have grown accustomed to pleasure, denial, and any way to medicate the pain. This is a dangerous place to be because we are avoiding spiritual growth and depth. My prayer is that when God takes me to the desert, I don't avoid it but embrace it. God, help me to be humble enough to learn the lessons you are teaching me and that I would obey even when it doesn't make sense.