“Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where he was tempted by Satan for forty days.”
Luke 4:1-13
At some point in our lives we are going to find ourselves in some type of wilderness. Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted. I have often wondered if Jesus really knew this period of temptation was coming. I think Jesus had intended to use this time in the wilderness for fasting, prayer, and reflection before he started his public ministry. God wanted to use this time to strengthen Jesus’ character before he started his public ministry.
Moses tried to do the right thing in the wrong way and ended up fleeing for his life. He spent the next forty years in the wilderness as a lowly shepherd. In a flash, Moses had gone from being a prince in Egypt to a fugitive, hiding in a foreign country. Over these long years, his life was deconstructed and rebuilt by God.
David also spent time in the wilderness, being chased by a king and his army who wanted to kill him. He wrote several of the Psalms during this period and they give us a window into his soul. “God where are you? Why are you allowing these people to attack me? I thought that you promised that I was going to be the next king? Are you even listening to me?”
When we find ourselves in the wilderness, we feel distant or even disconnected from God. There is often a sense that He is somewhere else in the universe because He is certainly not with me! Nothing could be further from the truth. God has promised never to leave us or forsake us. In reality, God is doing a deeper work in our life as we go through the wilderness.
It is easy to have faith when everything is going well. But what about when it seems like God has left us? This is when our faith is really developed and made stronger. When a person keeps moving towards God and trusting Him, even in the wilderness, they will find their faith muscles getting bigger. But even more importantly, they will experience a much deeper and richer relationship with their Heavenly Father.
How you handle those times when you find yourself in a wilderness?
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