The Desert Road ~ Principles 11-15
Soul Snack 89/14 ... Moses dwelt in the desert for a total of eighty years. For forty years he herded sheep after fleeing Egypt, then followed by another forty years herding a much larger and intransigent flock around the same wilderness.
As with Moses have you too walked far from Egypt, dwelt in a Sinai thirst too long, or faced the threat of the Amalekites? (See Exodus 17)
Have the brother/sisters of dissent become raucous, or do you expect to face daunting giants? (Don't forget - where there are giants, there are naysayers - BUT they are wrong in their spiritual blindness!)
All the privations and obstacles of the desert trek have a far higher purpose, they construct much deeper foundations. It is only when we can make sense of the desert travel that we can gain from all that the good Lord has fashioned us for.
The trek through life's deserts can be walked well, even amidst the most difficult of privations - these principles must be grasped to tread the wilderness road successfully:
11. The desert is the place of re-creation; it is the divine surgery for re-shaping the soul. To mix the metaphors, a new man arises from the ashes of the old man before exiting the desert; the wilderness is a Phoenix or a Lazarus to the soul.
12. Enjoy the sojourn of the desert for it is but brief, simple and easy compared to the task at the desert's end.
13. The desert is an arid place. It is the place a man learns thirst, not only of the body but also of the soul. This thirst is a tool in the Lord's hands to equip, and it will remain with the desert traveller his lifetime.
14. The desert is the place the dweller learns to 'be' and not to 'do.' Thanks (not grumbling) from the desert must given to the Lord for the untold blessings this brings.
15. God forges prophets in the wilderness. Its duration is for the gaining of strength and the learning of God's curriculum they will need on exit. The desert is the nursery to God's most powerful prophets. The longer the desert preparation the greater the task is at its exit.
Leonard Ravenhill was right:
"There are no reduced rates for revolution of the soul."
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.’ (Joshua 1:9)
Only a faith-laden, knee-bending courage will transport and deliver the desert dweller to Canaan.
Today's Soul Snippet:
The impossible is available to those who rely on the eternal.
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ENJOY - The Desert Road ~ Principles 6-10
ENJOY - The Desert Road ~ Principles 1-5
ENJOY - The Desert Sojourn ~ Entry