The Other Side (of the Wilderness)

I have never physically been in a desert or wilderness.

I flew over one once in Africa.

I have read about them.

But I have been in the wilderness. I know the wilderness. And I suspect many of you do too.

Let’s talk about the wilderness…

In the Bible, the wilderness is an arid, dangerous, isolated place. But it is where God’s people are sent to be refined, challenged and taught to depend completely on God. The wilderness is this unlikely place that no one really wants to go – but it’s where people truly meet God.

Likewise, today, although not a Middle Eastern desert, you and I have known wildernesses. Sometimes it’s a failing marriage or a divorce or a loss of a loved one. Sometimes it’s a diagnosis. Sometimes it’s a faith crisis or loss of faith. Sometimes it’s treatment for a disease or an addiction. Sometimes it’s a job change or loss. Sometimes it’s just being a tween or teen. Sometimes it’s after graduating high school or college. Sometimes it’s when you are caring of an aging or troubled parent or child.

I can’t show it to you on a map. But you know when you are there. It’s a season of life when you wonder if you will be intact at the end of it all. Everything seems out of control. What used to work doesn’t anymore. It seems like the end of certainty and confidence. Our sense of direction is all messed up – what was once up is now down. What was once east is now west. You really understand disorientation in the wilderness. And God feels so far away.

The wilderness is the place where you think it’s all going to end…but it’s actually the beginning…

Because in the wilderness, while we are stripped of much of ourselves, it’s what’s left that matters most. Like a refiner’s fire, all that’s left is the gold. All the dross and impurities are burned away. This is the purpose of God allowing us to enter into a wilderness. After it, we will be different but closer to what He is shaping us to be. In the wilderness we learn things that we would never learn in any other way. In the wilderness we find strength that we never knew we had; clarified purpose; a trust in God we never thought possible. In the end, we get much closer to seeing who God really is and who we are in God’s eyes – and we are given a choice…

Listen, I know the wilderness is hard. No one wants to be there. Maybe you are there now. I want to share with you what I have learned from my own wilderness over the last two years to encourage you. I want to show you and assure you that there is an other side to this. And I want to tell you the most important thing about the wilderness…

What I learned because of the wilderness…

Now I know what it is to keep going on when everything inside you wants to quit – this is faithfulness.

Now I know what Paul meant when he said I no longer live, Christ lives in me. The wilderness strips away your ego, pride and sense of self from a “success” point of view. You really learn in the wilderness that it’s not about “me.” I am a vessel and channel.

Now I know what it is to be at war with Satan and to face him head on. He is relentless and his goal is destruction. If you are trying to follow God with any kind of passion and faithfulness – he will be there opposing you – via doubt, fear, temptation, playing on your weaknesses, discouragement and he will use willing people too. Though scarred, I know now that he is beatable.

Now I know that sometimes victory isn’t overcoming – sometimes it’s remaining standing and enduring.

Now I know that when people try to tear me down and try to tell me I am a failure and I shouldn’t even be in ministry – I know to ignore it. When you stand for something, when you are leading, people are going to oppose you, but don’t believe their lies. We can do very little about their ignorance and blindness, but the worst thing you can do is to entertain foolishness, fears and agendas. Now I know to trust what God says about me more than anything else.

Now I know fully and with certainty who I am in Christ. I suspected it, I had hints of it. But this is it, “It is a matter of sharing and bearing the pain and puzzlement of the world so that the crucified love of God in Christ may be brought to bear healingly upon the world at exactly that point (N.T. Wright).”

Now I know that I’ve spent twenty years trying to accomplish things and being very driven. Now I understand God wants me to be Christopher and through that He will accomplish what He needs to accomplish. I’ve never had to fight to be myself. I was always just Christopher. Most things had always come naturally to me. But when this was relentlessly tested, for the first time I had to choose. There is an unprecedented choice in the wilderness. Sometimes it’s a choice between living and dying; sometimes it’s choice between being faithful and not; between quitting and enduring; between moving toward God or away; between depending on yourself or depending on God. I had to choose, consciously, to be who God was calling me to be or not. I could have turned away from it. But I didn’t. There’s a choice in the wilderness.

Now I know that God had us the whole time. Even when it seemed the worst, God never let go – and never will!

Now I understand beauty in a new way – there is such beauty in brokenness. Too often we are hiding it. It’s much more beautiful than some manufactured façade.

Now I know the difference (vast) between His strength and my strength.

Now I know what it is to be fearless, to be at peace, and to know that they can’t take away what matters most – they can’t take away the gold within us that is of God.

Finally, the most important thing to know about the wilderness is…that it is not permanent. It will end –

And, now I know that on the other side of a wilderness, on the other side of all the challenge, loss and pain and struggle and discouragement – is a promise and its fulfillment – a promised place, a promised state – a new life! I can testify to you today that God has kept His promises and we have been blessed beyond what we could have imagined.

I want you to be encouraged today by my testimony. The wilderness will end and it will end with goodness and blessings. There will be a day when you look back and will be able to say that it was worth it and that the blessings outweigh the pain. Take heart and never give up. Let this be a time of depending on God, finding joy in His strength – remember – draw near to God and He will draw near to you (James 4:8)! I promise you that God knows what He is doing and it is for our good.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Amen.

Rev. Christopher B. Wolf

Isaiah 42:7

cbrianwolf@gmail.com

www.christopherbwolf.com

Christopher B. Wolf is the author of Giving Faith a Second Chance: Restarts, Mulligans and Do-Overs (2007) and the forthcoming, With You: Every Step of the Way (2011).

“It is a matter of sharing and bearing the pain and puzzlement of the world so that the crucified love of God in Christ may be brought to bear healingly upon the world at exactly that point.” N.T. Wright

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Now What?

Life is about moments.

 

And there are certain kinds of moments.

 

There are the moments when we are facing unknown territory – whether by choice or by circumstances. Moments like graduations, marriages, new jobs or promotions, birth of children. Other moments like losing jobs, a devastating diagnosis, loss of financial resources, divorce or loss of relationship, loss of a loved one. Other moments like when we realize we have been comfortable for too long and need to step out in faith. Other moments like when we start to think about coming back to God or trying church again. Any moment that requires faith for the next step – in other words – a step that isn’t easily visible.

 

There is a point in one of these moments when the reality has set in and we face it and we are left with one key question – “Now what?”

 

Now what do I do? Now what can I do? Now what do I say? Now who do I turn to? Now what do I stand on? Now what do I believe?

 

Now what?

 

One of my main “Now what” moments was after my parents and I said a tearful goodbye on move-in day at college. I solemnly walked back up the hill into the residence hall and passed the drawing room and quickly locked myself in my room. And I sat there for a while thinking, “Now what?” I thought, “Do I stay in this room where it seemed relatively safe and hide in here or do I walk down the hall and introduce myself to the two crazy guys playing indoor soccer in the narrow space down the hall.” And I realized that I couldn’t stay in that room forever. That I was at college to grow and transform and do things differently. I was on my own now and I couldn’t hide in a shell. So I built up my courage, opened the door, walked down the hall, facing the fears of what they might think of me, thinking this was crazy and then introduced myself to Anthony and Chris who would become very treasured friends that year. For me, that walk down the hall changed a lot. It was a breakthrough moment because I learned how to overcome fears and thinking that held me back previously. And I learned that there was something promising on the other side of the fear.  

 

In the above Scripture, Joshua faced the question of “Now what?” The hero of the Israelites, Moses, has died. And while Joshua has been an “aide” to Moses for many years, now it is up to Joshua to lead these people into the promised land. And it wouldn’t be easy, the 40 years in the wilderness had been very difficult, there were many challenges awaiting the people to even acquire the promised land.

 

Joshua was facing the biggest challenge of his life. And while it doesn’t say it, I think we can imagine and identify with how he might have felt. “Now what.”  

 

But…

 

But Joshua receives a strong, clear message from the Lord. He reminds Joshua of His Word – and that it would guide him in all that he did. He pointed out to Joshua that within the Word are many promises. God, after all, is a God of promises. Out of the more than 30,000 verses in the Bible, more than 8,000 or roughly 25 percent are about God’s promises. Finally, God commands Joshua to be strong, let go of fears, and take forward steps.

 

“I hereby command you: Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9),” the Lord tells Joshua and it speaks to us today too.  

 

Let me ask you this. If I told you that everything you needed to know to enjoy true “success” in life was found in one book, would you believe me? Would you read it night and day? Would you “meditate” on the words as the Lord tells Joshua too? I know you know this “book” – but we don’t delve into it enough. Why?

 

Why do we keep operating on the world’s definition of success? Confidence, money, fame, stuff all go away and will mean nothing when we come before the Lord at the end of this earthly existence. Yet, we keep chasing after them. God’s definition of success is faithfulness – meaning did we fight the things of this world to love Him above all and love our neighbors as ourselves. See the difference?

 

Let me ask you this. Do you trust the chair you are sitting in will remain intact while you are sitting in it? Of course, you believe the promise of the manufacturer that a chair will not break. Ok. Then why do we have such trouble trusting in the promises of Almighty God?!! The God who created this world and us. The God who promises eternal life through faith in His Son Jesus (nothing in this world can take it away (Romans 8:38-39). The God who promises to dwell inside of us through His Holy Spirit – and never leave us. His promises are many and they are true. I can testify to you that He has kept all His promises to me. I may not have all liked the ways He has made them happen – but He is God and I am most certainly not.

 

So when the Lord says to Joshua that through His Word and Promises, he is commanded to trust and be fearless in the face of this great challenge – it may not be easy, it may be uncomfortable, but he is compelled to listen and obey – and not like a robot – but as a person of faith in a relationship with a purposeful, promising, providential God.

 

And so it is for us today.

 

Whatever great challenge you are facing in your life right now, these words, promises and commands are for you too. To whatever you are saying, “Now what?” – I know it is scary. I know it looks impossible right now. Maybe it feels lonely and hopeless.

 

But for Joshua and for us today, on the other side of the challenge, fear, and impossibility is a promised land – a wonderful, promised place of abundance. And between us and that promised place – is a God that goes before us, alongside us and behind us – leading, providing, encouraging.

 

If the question is “Now what?” The answer is…”Now I am going to take that first step…in faith.”

 

Amen.

 

Discussion Questions

1. Are there some situations in your life that cause you to ask “Now What?”
2. What are you afraid of? Why? What is holding you back?
3. Do you believe God is a God of promises? Why or why not?
4. What does a “promised land” look like for you? Is it peace, is it a place, is it a new definition of success, is it a God-honoring goal?

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The Way Back

Hosea 6:1-2

The Way Back  

“Come, let us return to the Lord. For he has torn, that he may heal us. He has stricken, and he will build us up. After two days, he will revive us; on the third day, he will raise us up, that we may live before him.” Hosea 6:1-2 (RSV)

 

The truth is that we all have some “prodigal” in us. It is easy to think of the prodigal son (Luke 15) as a person who needed a lesson and thankfully comes back. But if we are honest about most of our faith journeys, it is a process of going away and returning to the Lord. We spend seasons on the mountaintop only to have everything fall through. We find ourselves in the wilderness, at the end of our rope, finally crawling onto the edges of a promised land. Some of us have lost years, decades even. And then, without any warning, our hearts once again, begin to yearn for God or something about him. As the band Pearl Jam sings in their song “Thumbing My Way (Back to Heaven)” – “No matter how cold the winter, there’s a springtime ahead; I’m thumbing my way back to heaven.”

 

But we have to ask the questions, “Why the wilderness, why the lost years?”

 

The above verses in particular are about how that yearning sometimes comes back. Hosea, as you know was a prophet asking God’s people to wake up to the distance between them and God. “Come, let us return to the Lord (1).”

 

But then the prophet offers what will seem to some as a strange explanation. “For he (the Lord) has torn, that he may heal us.” Why do we have to be torn, so that God can heal us? Why can’t we just stay un-torn or whole? And you know what I am going to say. That we don’t start off whole to begin with. Sins like pride, lust, and others are ever present in our lives. It is the human, fallen condition. If that isn’t bad enough, our denial only makes it worse. When sin leads us to believe that we don’t need God or don’t need to follow his ways, is as they say, insult to injury.

 

And because we believe that God is always purposeful, these words from Hosea cut deeply. “For he has torn (allowing our sins and their consequences), that he may heal (come to understand our need for Him) us. How often have we felt torn, physically, mentally and spiritually? But more importantly, how often have we felt torn and then seen it as God actually trying to heal us or draw us closer? I guess it is easier to blame God for bad circumstances and just be angry. But oh what we miss when we leave it at that. Because the awful truth is that God has to tear us to get us to see that we completely need him for salvation and living. For most of us, without the tearing and wildernesses, we wouldn’t acknowledge the need for a savior.

 

Admittedly, it took many years for me to learn this to the point where I really believe it. And I do. Part of my job is not so much to give answers, but to give sight based on the Word. And more often than not, I find myself with brothers and sisters helping them to see what God is doing in their lives. And this is the principle at work many, many times. And I can say it with hope because of my own tearing experiences.

 

And there is hope in this passage, much hope! “He has stricken, and he will build us up. After two days he will revive us, on the third day, he will raise us up, that we may live before him.” You see as humans, we often look at the torn and stricken and say, “why?” instead of saying “Amen!” to the healing, building up, reviving, and raising up so that we may live parts.

 

By the way, have you caught the echoes of Jesus in these two verses? Our dear savior was torn so that we can be healed; Jesus was stricken for our sins and was built up. Built up when? On the third day he was raised up and because of that we live before God. But remember, Jesus had to be torn and had to die for us to live eternally – it was the only way. And therefore is it also the rhythm for our daily living – tearing down and then building up; dying to our sins and then finding new life in Christ.

 

I know you are torn and stricken. I wish I could take it all away. But even if I could, I would be interrupting what God is trying to do in your life. And that is – trying to get us to return to him; not just to church, although that might be one way; but leading our hearts back to him. Leading us to turn our hearts home to him again. So whether it is the first time you need to come back or the twentieth, as the verse said, “Come let us return to the Lord.”

 

And you know there is nothing like coming home. Whether it is after a long day, or after months or years. A couple of times a year I return home to New Jersey, and it starts with seeing the familiar signs and sights along Route 80 all the way until I enter my hometown Fair Lawn and arrive at my brother’s house – seeing family and friends – those blessed reunions. There is nothing like returning to a place and people where you are known and loved. Just walking up to the door, that first smile or hug, can make the journey all worth it. That is what it is like to return to the Lord.

 

And as the song says, “No matter how cold the winter, there’s a springtime ahead; I’m thumbing my way back to heaven.”

 

I am right beside you walking and praying – we can come home to Him after all.

 

Amen.

  

Discussion Questions

1. What is your gut or first reaction to hearing that God tears us (even though for a purpose)?
2. When you think of tearing times in your life (maybe even right now) what does this passage say to you?
3. Can you think of some times when you felt revived after being in the wilderness? What were they like? Does God get the credit for that too?

4.   Would you like to return to the Lord but don’t know how? Please call or email me, I would love to help.

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