Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak softly unto her.

Hosea 2:14

I have had a pretty rough month so far. Things have not gone as I had hoped or planned. If I’m being honest, I have felt a little lost and alone.  There are times I feel like I am in the wilderness. Life has gotten so busy and so sticky and I finally took a moment to look up and I realize that I am in the middle of the wilderness. 

I know that some of you feel that at times, too. I don’t know what goes on in your lives. The only thing I know to do is share the road that I am on, in the hopes that if you are also on the same road, you can look up and see that you aren’t alone. 

Maybe God has pulled us into the wilderness to get our attention. Life happens at a break neck pace and sometimes we don’t look up enough to realize what’s happening. So God, in His infinite wisdom and grace, has drawn us into a place that is quiet and alone, so He can speak to us in a place that we can hear His voice. It seems lonely and we feel lost because all the crazy life stuff kept us distracted and occupied. 

My point is this, the wilderness isn’t bad all of the time. Sometimes it’s necessary and good to be pulled away from the busy schedules we subject ourselves to and stop and just listen in the quiet, in the desert. God may be trying to tell you something, trying to get your attention and teach you something. Don’t fight the solitude. Don’t try and add more to your plate to keep busy, just take some time and breath. 

I’m a fighter, naturally. I will do whatever I can to keep busy, to make things not quiet. The quiet, dark, aloneness scares me. It’s so vulnerable. No one likes to feel that way. But it’s a part of life and we need to embrace all sides of this messy chaos. 

I would hate to miss God’s voice because I’m too resistant to just stop and enjoy the place God has brought me too. Don’t be that way either. 

My challenge to you is to really stop, take a look around and see where God has lead you. If you find yourself  in the wilderness, relish it. It is a shock to the senses, but it’s so worth the time to just be in His presence, without all the distractions, without the things in life pulling you this way and that. Take some moments and just be with God. Let Him speak softly to you and redirect your path if necessary. Worry never gained us anything and fear never bought us comfort. However, hope and faith will bring us to His feet, at the foot of the cross, where we can lay it down and take a breath of His peace.

Amber