“You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek You; I thirst for You. My whole being longs for You in a dry and parched land where there is no water.”
(Psalm 63:1 NIV)
My quick little foray into Old Testament Survey on Monday night reminded me that the five books of Psalms follow the themes of the Pentatuech. This stretch from Psalm 42-72 echoes the Exodus and it is abundantly clear in today’s reading.
It is only in the wilderness (physical or spiritual) that we learn to earnestly seek God and refuse to give up until we’ve laid hold of Him. In the hustle and bustle and relative comfort of regular life, we might bump into God on occasion. We carve out an hour or two on Sunday. We may even go the extra mile and crack our Bible for daily devotions or perfunctory prayers. But for the most part, our day to day lives are stuffed full of lesser stuff. There is much competing for our attention. God may be a piece of it, but He is rarely the whole of our existence. There are many other distractions and commitments.
But in the wilderness, all that other stuff falls away. In the wilderness, life is stripped down to essentials and we can’t take another step without knowing God is with us. It is only in this parched land of perception or circumstance that we are consumed with longing for God. It is in the wilderness where we discover that He truly is enough. In the wasteland that we learn that our God really will provide all we need according to His riches and glory. In the wilderness we learn to follow closely: convinced and contingent upon His protection and provision.
Having crawled through a couple of wilderness stretches myself, I’m learning to recognize the value of alone with God. Time away together builds relationship far faster than abundant opportunity amidst the crush of ordinary life.
Looking at the eternal benefits of wilderness experiences, I’m a little amazed that God doesn’t walk us by way of the desert more often. In grace He limits our seasons of comfort and excess. It’s His desire for relationship that calls us into the wasteland with Him.
John the Baptist lived a less-than life. He spent whole decades willfully in the wilderness. Jesus called him greatest among those born of women. What set him apart? His humility. His needfulness for divine intimacy. John’s years in the desert allowed him hunger and occasion to become good friends with God. Which is why whoever is in heaven will wind up begin greater than John; because heavenly citizens will live in the unfurling presence of God uninterrupted.
At second consideration, the wilderness might be a dustier, uncrowded translation of heaven. It may be our rare opportunity here on earth to experience God’s presence more adequately. Don’t avoid it. Don’t hurry through. Receive these seasons as the unlikely gift they are.
“My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life.”
(Psalm 119:50 NIV)
Lord, thank You for wilderness seasons where we see Your character more clearly. Help us to be grateful and intentional even when we are uncomfortable. Let us learn to embrace the desert as an opportunity for divine intimacy. Amen.