THE WILDERNESS EXPERIENCE

(A Judean Wilderness) 

 

http://youtu.be/Wuevh_ZtaDc 

(Click link - Joyce Meyers)

Deuteronomy 8:3-4 (NIV) "He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years."

Wilderness: A place which is not controllable by humans. A bewildering or confusing situation or place to be in.

          We all may have experienced times in our lives where we had no control over our situation at hand. We had no way out, things appeared as if it was lifeless, dry, unproductive and at a dead state. These were the times when we wondered or asked, "God, where are you?" Often, God will place us in the "wilderness" to see will we trust and obey Him. He wants to know will be totally depend on Him enough to allow Him to provide and protect us.

         God tested Israel in the wilderness in order to know what was in their heart. It was not as if our all-knowing God couldn't see their hearts. They needed to see how faithless and proud their own hearts were. Are we like the Israelites as well? Because of our sinful nature we get the ridiculous idea that we are independent creatures. We think we can take care of ourselves. That is why we are taken through wilderness experiences.

          When the LORD sets his love upon us, the most gracious thing He can do for us is to show us truth and His power at work in us and through us. The truth is that we are indeed dependent creatures, dependent upon God and His Word for air, water, food, ability, and life itself. God alone is self-sustaining. How do you think Moses survived (two) forty-day fasts without water? The Word of God sustained him. How could the nation of Israel live for 40 years in a desert? The Word of God brought water from the rock, bread from the sky, and kept their clothing from wearing out.

         When we realize this fact of total dependency, we are humbled. Jesus knew it to be true. He said, "I can do nothing by myself." As a man, He knew He had become dependent on the Word of His Father, and so He spoke and acted what He heard and saw of the Father. The affect of the humbling truth that we are totally dependent on the Word of God should change the way we speak and act if we are to accomplish anything of lasting value.

          When going through any "Wilderness Experience", don't rely upon what you or others can provide, but what Jehovah-jireh (God, Our provider) can make available to us as we believe and trust Him. The Wilderness experience is not a permanent place but our way to pass through to our Canaan! Endure the wilderness test!