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We all have had desert experiences in our lives at different seasons of time along our journey. Some seasons of trial are short and some are very long.
He loves us so much that sometimes He allows us to stay in those deserts for a while to bring us back to Him. When it gets hot and dry we start looking to Him for relief. You know why?
- He misses you and desires relationship with you.
Hosea 2: 6-14 says
“Therefore will I block her path with thorn bushes. I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way. She will chase after her lovers but will not catch them.”
- He does this to bring us to the end of ourselves and to get us to turn to Him in thirsty longing. Then He begins to draw us to Himself. He often takes us aside from every source of comfort so that He alone can have our heart’s attention.
Then He says in 2:14
“Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her.”
- And it is here that we begin to experience him not as the God up in heaven, the big guy in the sky, the God of Sunday Mornings, but as the pursuer of our hearts; As our lover.
“In that day, declares the Lord, you will call me “my husband” and you will no longer call me “my master”. I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion.” (vs 16-19)
This love is not something we struggle for, earn or fear. It is bestowed upon us.
He has chosen us.
We are made for such a love.
- Our hearts yearn to be loved intimately, personally, and romantically. We are created to be the object of His desire and affection and He is totally and completely in love with us.
God wants intimacy with YOU! In order to have it you must offer it to Him and surrender yourself over to Him.
I was forced by extremely painful circumstances into five years of desert where I met Jesus face to face. In the first couple of years of my sweltering in the desert I experienced:
- Anger
- Desperation
- Depression
- Abandonment
- Emotional Agony
- Empty Nest
- Financial woes
- Heartbreak
Then out of my own depth of pain I sought Him.
I began talking…and He did too.
- We desperately need a deep sense of value as a person in order to function mentally and emotionally in the way that God intends. Having a sense of irrevocable value can and will affect our attitudes and actions. If we merely try to change our behavior without realizing that it is our quest for value that is motivating much of what we do, then we engage in a fruitless endeavor. We might spend our entire lives hunting for love and acceptance from the people around us, but the hole at the center of our being can only be filled by the Healer himself. He designed us in such a way that we need him housed within us to be made whole.
- Outside of performance I was alone and free to pursue Him as my lover. I started listening to Him again. And He was faithful to show me how my own denials led me into the wilderness, and He allowed it. He allowed it to show me the difference in true relationship and performance driven religion. We took walks, drives, and had long talks together.
- And so when the revelation came that I did not have to do anything to make Him love me more than he did at that moment, nor did I have to DO anything but love Him, I was set free.
- Life can be painful, even dangerous. But God’s healing grace is our safety cable. God’s grace enables us to move forward in life with confidence, knowing that when we fall, we find safety and security in the love of Jesus. Even in the midst of our worst performance, he never leaves us; he never forsakes us.
- If you’ve been wondering how you can know and experience God’s healing touch in your life, there is no better way than through coming to understand the new covenant. God shows us what his healing grace really looks like through the new covenant.
Remember what Galatians 5:1 says:
It is for freedom He has set us free. (Galatians 5:1)