Your Wilderness Revelation

Your Wilderness Revelation
by Martin Schmaltz
maschmaltz@juno.com

Have you ever found yourself wandering in a wilderness?

What is a wilderness place?
It is uninhabited, sparse, sterile place of desolation: characterized by one word - solitude. It is a place you find yourself alone with nothing but your thoughts and emotions. The amazing thing is that you can be in a wilderness experience, yet be in the most populated city.

This is a common place that a child of God will find themselves on their spiritual journey. This wilderness can be initiated in many different arenas: health, ministry, career, provision or relationship. No matter the arena, it is a place we find uncomfortable, sometimes directionless, and just plain barren. (it's ok to say amen here!)

The Purpose Of Your Wilderness
So what is the purpose of our wilderness? May I say, one word: REVELATION. Just like fire purifies silver and gold, the wilderness experience brings to the surface the impurities of our lives. The externals of our lives are stripped away, figuratively or literally, and we come face to face with the real us. It is here, that God encourages us to address ourselves.

When Israel was delivered from Egypt, God did not lead them directly to the Promised Land. He took them on a wilderness tour. It was in this place of isolation that God revealed two things:

The Revelation of Self & The Revelation of Himself.

The Revelation of Self

Our Bondage To The Past

In the wilderness by the Red Sea the situation revealed their bondage to the past. They cried out to go back to their former life. This place revealed that Pharaoh still maintained influence over them, they exhibited a slave mentality. God was pointing out that they might have been out of Egypt, but Egypt was not out of them.

In the business of life, it is easy to keep things hidden in our lives, even from our self. But it is in the wilderness experience our bondage to the past is revealed. When the pressure of the isolation grows, somehow it taps into our weaknesses; feelings of inadequacy and old habits are brought to the surface. We now have the opportunity to address them.

Our Bitterness

In the wilderness area of Marah, God revealed the bitterness that was in the nation of Israel. The situation brought out their disappointment: it was not as they expected. They had gone three days without water, now come to a place they expect refreshing: but it was not what they expected it to be.

The longer we live, the more our expectations for happiness can be crushed: our plans don't seem to work out. Because our wilderness experience is never expected: it can bring out the bitterness of disappointment in us. The long buried injuries and failures of our lives will begin to surface: allowing God to refresh us if we let Him.

Our Hunger

In the wilderness of Sin, Israel experienced a hunger for the things of the past. They longed to get off Gods schedule of development and go back to a place that was comfortable.

It is common knowledge; we really do not like to change. It is the wilderness experiences that cause us to face this truth. It is here we come to understand how comfortable we have become with our familiar lifestyle. Here we also learn to trust God in a place of unknown. Whether it is changing from a life without God or moving forward in His plans, there are times the change is tough and we can begin to look longingly back to what once was.

Revelation of God
In our wilderness experience, seeing our self is a setup for God's revelation of Himself.

In the wilderness experience, God revealed himself to Israel:

* At the Red sea - He delivered them from the bondage of the past.
* In the Wilderness of Shur - he delivered them from bitterness that consumed them.
* In the Wilderness of Sin - He dealt with their hunger for their old comfortably lifestyle.

When the wilderness strips us of ourselves, we come to the place that we can see the Lord and his work in our lives. It is in this place of pain and isolation we can experience the healing and restoration that God offers.
So, embrace your wilderness experience: it is where you will find Him embracing you!

by Martin Schmaltz
maschmaltz@juno.com