The Desert

 April 23, 2023

Deserts are not where normal people live. I don’t say that to belittle the Bedouin or any other ethnic group or people who live in such inhospitable places, but most people choose life in less harsh environments. I’ve noticed however, that God seems to favor desert places. Though life began in a garden, it was in the Garden that we lost our connection with God. It was in the desert that the connection was restored.

Moses was a wanderer in the desert. God sent him there to learn its ways so he could lead Israel through it. The Law was given in the desert, as was the Tabernacle and the priesthood. Generations later, it was in the desert that God revealed himself to Elijah, and even later, where Jesus overcame the Tempter. It was where Paul went to hear from God, and where St. John received the Revelation. We are a desert people.

I shrink from the desert. I don’t like it there; it’s hot, dry, and dangerous. I’m not speaking of earthly deserts, but the desert of my soul. Like Lot, I prefer the well-watered plains of Jordan, but danger lurks there. Lush and lavish living entice the soul and dull the spirit till I am deaf to the whisper of God. Like Elijah, sometimes God drives me into the desert places, forcing me to examine my soul. It’s not pleasant, but if like Elijah, I want to stand before God, I must not reject the desert into which he sends me. I must be willing to endure those dry times under the withering heat that parches my mouth till I cry out for the Living Water.

I wrote the other day about wanting to be for my family like Elijah, the chariot and horsemen of Israel. Elijah didn’t attain that status in cushy, soft places. He stood before the Almighty in the desert where distractions fade and life is reduced to the basics. My human flesh shrinks back from such elemental rugged harshness. I like life to be comfortable, but one cannot stand before a holy God in comfort. Unless I am willing for all else to be stripped away, to be driven into the desert, I will miss the appointment with God that I most desperately need. 

So my soul, “To the desert!” Rise early. Deny yourself. Pick up your cross and follow Jesus into the desert where you will stand before God, and return as the chariot and horsemen of those whom God has placed in your care.