the WAY in the WILDERNESS

“Remember not the former things,

    nor consider the things of old.

Behold, I am doing a new thing;

    now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?

I will make a way in the wilderness

    and rivers in the desert.

Isaiah 43:18-19

Feeling very much in the wilderness these last couple days at work. Back from the long Thanksgiving weekend and there has been nothing but conflict and tension swirling around me. I am trying not to let the external forces of other peoples drama disrupt my peace but it's a struggle I often lose. It's amazing how two days at work can feel like five. My little desk calendar had the offering of the above verse from Isaiah today and it was much needed.

There are times the word "wilderness" elicits exciting connotations - untamed, untouched by man, natural splendor, etc.. But the word "wilderness" can also imply a lonely, desolate place, full of predators.

A dear friend texted me a message quoting Proverbs 27:17 "Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another." I mention that because I think we are all in wildernesses of some kind. We are all certainly sojourners, elect exiles while we live here on earth awaiting our being with Jesus in Paradise. It's crucial to have friendship founded on the mutual love of God and rooted in the joy of Jesus - who He is, what He's done, and the eternity of worship before us. The wilderness is real, but God has made the Way in the Wilderness through His only Son Jesus Christ. We elect exiles need to remind one another of this often so I say again, the wilderness is real, but God has made the Way in the Wilderness through His only Son Jesus Christ.

"Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone?" Ecclesiastes 4:11