Rivers in the desert

“Behold, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs forth; do you not perceive {and} know it {and} will you not give heed to it? I will even make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:19

“The poor and needy are seeking water when there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. 18 I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.” Isaiah 41:17-18

 

In these verses Daddy God is telling the Israelites how He will deliver them. We can  also take comfort in these verses and know that God similarly will deliver us and make roads in the wilderness and rivers in the desert for us as well.

Some of us are experiencing period of time where our trials seems long and hard and it feels like Daddy God is far from us. It is like living in a desert where life seems dry and barren. There is no water and no shelter. We feel that all sense of direction is lost and we do not know when it will end. But it is part of the spiritual journey that is necessary for us and can be beneficial in our Christian lives if only we do not give up. Daddy God will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

In a vision, Daddy God showed me a big tree whose roots go deeper and deeper in search for water supply. During the dry times, Daddy God wants us to go deeper and reach for the waters of life. The stronger and the deeper the roots, the stronger the life. The deeply rooted trees will survive every storm. In the same way, God challenges us to have those same kinds of deep roots.

“You have planted them, yes, they have taken root; they grow, yes, they bring forth fruit.” Jer 12:2

“For I am like a tree whose roots reach the water, whose branches are refreshed with the dew.” Job 29:19

There are many biblical examples of desert experiences. Abraham and Sarah were wanderers in the desert. Elijah and Elisha both went into the desert to find God’s answers for the difficulties they faced in dealing with the moral crises of their time. Moses spent 40 years in the desert in preparation for leading God’s chosen people Israel from their bondage in Egypt. The Israelites journeyed 40 years in the wilderness. John the Baptist lived in the desert where God instructed him on the need for repentance of sins and baptism. Jesus himself spent 40 days in the desert in preparation for His public ministry and death on the cross.

The Israelites were led by God for forty years through the wilderness before they reached the promise land. Sometimes the only way to get you to where God wants you to be is through the wilderness. It is in our desert experience where we learn to totally depend on God, bow our knees and cry out to Him. Daddy God uses these experiences to draw us closer to HIM. He uses this time to restore us and prepare us for service. He is using our desert experience to produce beautiful things in our lives that can only grow in hard circumstances.

Maybe you are going through a desert experience right now, a time where things are so dry in your life. Maybe you don’t feel God’s presence in your life. Maybe you don’t feel His love or His power. What should you do? Will you give up? We either give up or get up. We either continue walking in the narrow road or stop and turn back.  We must not let the desert moments strain our relationship with God. Just as God sent the Israelites water and manna in the desert to sustain them on their journey to the Promised Land, God has sent us Jesus as the Bread of Life to strengthen and sustain us for our journey.

“And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:17-19

In times of darkness, trouble and despair, Daddy God has made rivers with His mercy, grace and love. He controls the length and the intensity of each trial and each desert season. He promised us that He will not leave us in the desert without water. He places rivers in the desert to bring life. He makes a way in the wilderness. Jesus said, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.” Our own sense of drought should lead us more to Jesus. He is the rivers of water in a dry place. We must seek Jesus like the thirsty seeks for water.

ALL GLORY TO GOD!