The desert and the parched land will be glad;
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
Here are our crocuses waiting in the foliage to bloom. Another rainy day and the photo opportunities seem few. But get a closer look and the rain is an essential part of life. The verse of Isaiah says the parched land will be glad. I’m not sure in Britain we fully understand this! As it seems that we always have copious amounts of rain, more than the average country. Go to the lake district for some walking and you had better pack a raincoat even when it is a sunny day. But these flowers are there waiting, as they have been for some weeks for their moment.
Everyone has their moment we just have to wait.
Pray and trust in the Lord that He will lead us to a place that is the right place. When we have found a place we enjoy and feel happy, content and at home we know. We don’t need anyone to go through a survey with us, we don’t need people to observe and feedback on how we are, we just know.
Sometimes opportunities come along that might at first seem that God is leading you there, or that a friend is suggesting this so you might want to follow his advice. Or even an opportunities opens up. But we have to be very careful as the glare of the new venture might lure us out of a place that God has set us in and needs us in.
My son, if you receive my words
and treasure up my commandments with you,
making your ear attentive to wisdom
and inclining your heart to understanding;
yes, if you call out for insight
and raise your voice for understanding,
if you seek it like silver
and search for it as for hidden treasures,
then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
Wisdom and understanding might come from many sources. The Bible has much to say about many subjects, and getting a paper bible that has a subject index is great for that. Also getting an electronic app or bible on your computer is also a good way to explore themes, but nothing beats sitting or kneeling down and praying. Wisdom and understanding can come from friends. Close friends and relatives.
We couldn’t exist without rain.
Every life form can not exist without water of some sort. A few days without water is nearing death for a human.
Moses led his tribe across the desert for forty years. It really does make me wonder how a huge tribe of people could exist for forty years in a desert, but God didn’t abandon them. In the most inhospitable terrain possible God cared for them and they saw Gods works first hand.
But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
So why did the people doubt God could keep them alive. I don’t know why doubt arrises in life, but I do know that we as humans seem fickle in that we love to have a figure to follow. An idol. Perhaps it doesn’t matter what the idol does as long as they look good. God directly warns against this and yet here we are in a society that is immersing children in a culture of looks. Magazines, TV and all sorts of media emphasise how you must look good to be successful.
But we must make a stance. Looks are not important to God. It is what is on the inside. Just like God quenched the thirst of the Jews in the desert by making a spring come from a rock, come from an unexpected place. God may bring advice and friendship from many places and we must accept these friendships and discern this advice when it comes.
Our moment of blooming may not have come but when it does we need to be ready.
Praying and strengthening ourselves as Christians is how we should do this. Each prayer is like a droplet of rain, but I am uneasy about praying for myself all the time. We must pray for people who need Gods help.
I pray for you tonight reading this. For your concerns and worries, even though I do not know, God knows who needs help and in what part of their life they need help, so my prayer goes out to you tonight. May God bless you, and keep you and lead you towards a beautiful life dwelling in God.
Amen
with blessings
Graham
365 Exhortations 