A Way Through the Wilderness

A Way Through The Wilderness

Isaiah 35:1-10 “The wilderness and the desert will be glad, And the Arabah will rejoice and blossom; Like the crocus,  It will blossom profusely And rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, The majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the Lord, The majesty of our God. Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the feeble. Say to those with anxious heart, “Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you.” Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the Arabah. The scorched land will become a pool And the thirsty ground springs of water. In the haunt of jackals, its resting place, Grass becomes reeds and rushes.  A highway will be there, a roadway, And it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean will not travel on it, But it will be for him who walks that way, And fools will not wander on it. No lion will be there, Nor will any vicious beast go up on it; These will not be found there. But the redeemed will walk there, And the ransomed of the Lord will return And come with joyful shouting to Zion, With everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away.”

This is much longer than I usually do. I typically pick a verse and go with it. I heard the last few verses of this chapter in Isaiah at prayer group yesterday, and I really liked them. Then, when I read the whole chapter, I would pick a few verses in the middle to share. However, there were a few places in the verses that I didn’t understand. I was going to just explain the ones I did understand, and then I remembered how every time I look up the meaning of the verses I don’t understand, I am so glad I did. Whenever I look up the importance of the verses I don’t understand, I learn something interesting. Today is no different. I decided to look up the meaning of Isaiah 35, and I am happy I did.

I decided to use the middle verses because they talk about the eyes of the blind being opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. I know many people who need healing right now, so I thought these verses would be perfect. Yet, when I read the article about the meaning of Isaiah, it talked about that verse meaning our spiritual ears and eyes. It was remarkable all the things that were discussed in this article. I will place a link for it in the show notes, as it was a fantastic article to read. The article is called The Holy Way by Tony S. Everett. I will share with you the things that stood out to me.

“In today's lesson, the people of God have been living as exiles in Babylon, approximately 500 miles from their homeland. The mighty Babylonian army, under King Nebuchadnezzar, had conquered Judah, shattered the city walls of Jerusalem, and left the Jerusalem temple in ruins. As was the custom in those days, conquering armies would relocate thousands of leading citizens in order to prevent any organized rebellion. The only way home was through this vast, frightening, and overwhelming wilderness. Perhaps even God had forgotten them. Their hands were weak, their knees had grown feeble, and their hearts had become fearful. There appeared to be no hope, no help, and no way to be restored and renewed.”

We have all been in the wilderness at some point or another. A dark, scary place where we felt alone, scared, and forgotten. We feel overlooked by friends and family and sometimes even by God. Times when we thought we couldn’t go any further. The terrain was too challenging, and the hardships were too much. It was too dark to see where we were going. We lost all hope, we lost our way, and we just wanted to give up and hide under a blanket forever. Have you ever had a time like this? Maybe you are in a time like this right now.

Today, God promises that way. It is God's holy way through the very wilderness space in our souls. "A highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Holy Way ... it shall be for God's people: no traveler, not even fools, shall go astray" (Isaiah 35:8).

I love what the author talks about next. He states that God did not promise to get rid of the wilderness. He did not promise we would never have to enter the wilderness again. He promised us a road right through the middle of the wilderness. He promised us a way of holy living in the midst of the wilderness. I love that! The author says, “The Lord is about to establish a new and faithful kingship in the world. Again, God will do this not by eliminating any and all wilderness space but by 1) changing the very wilderness itself, 2) changing the way God's people perceive the wilderness, and 3) transforming the way God's people behave in the wilderness.”

“First, God changes the wilderness. "Waters and streams shall nourish the dry land" (Isaiah 35:6 cf). "The burning sand shall become a pool and the thirsty ground springs of water" (Isaiah 35:7). "Wild beasts and predators will not be found there" (Isaiah 35:7, 9 cf). "Lions and other predatory beasts will not live in the wilderness anymore" (Isaiah 35:9 cf). "In the wilderness, the glory and majesty of the Lord will be revealed for all to see" (Isaiah 35:2 cf).” He goes on to state, “The Bible is filled with stories of how God changes the wilderness by being present within it. Remember that! Write it on your hearts! God does not eliminate wilderness from our lives. God changes those scary spaces by being present within them.”

“Second, God not only changes the wilderness spaces themselves, God opens blind eyes that just can't seem to see God's presence in those times of overwhelming fear, anxiety, confusion, and doubt. God opens ears so stopped up that they are deaf to God's word of promise and guidance (Isaiah 35:5). God empowers those who view themselves as trapped in their own wilderness; disabled by their own fears. God will increase their energy and send them leaping like a deer along God's holy way (Isaiah 35:6). To those whose voices can only speak pessimistic, contagious, doom and gloom about their own wilderness, God will give songs of joy (Isaiah 35:6).” Those chaotic and confusing spaces still exist. However, God changes the way we see and experience them; from hopeless and helpless, to potential and possibility; from exhaustion and despair, to renewed energy and anticipation. Look again with new eyes at your own wilderness spaces. Open your eyes to see God's presence and guidance on the holy journey of life.”

The author ends with his third point. “Third, and finally, God's holy way includes changing behavior as we travel. In our text, Isaiah describes that preparation for the discouraged exiles and for us. "Strengthen the weak hands and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who are of a fearful heart, be strong, do not fear! Here is your God ... He will come and save you" (Isaiah 35:3-4).”

“Well, that's easier said than done, right? Alone, yes; without God's promise to change the wilderness from burning sand to pools of water. Alone without God's promise to change the dry land to abundant streams and blossoming flowers. Impossible without God's promise of safety from prowling beasts and bandits; impossible without God's promise to change into rejoicing and singing the fearful, despairing way we see the wilderness. Isaiah writes in verse 8, "not even fools," like you and me perhaps, will go astray on God's holy way.”

Well, it turns out I just ended up reading most of the article word for word because the way he explained it was so good. I did leave out a few things, and I think you would get a lot out of going back and reading the full article. The article is The Holy Way by Tony S. Everett. CLICK HERE for article

What I liked best about this article is that it reminds us that God isn’t going to take all of our trials from us. He isn’t going to let us skate through life without any rough times. It is usually in the rough times that we learn and grow the most. However, God will walk through those tough times with us. He won’t leave us alone. He will make a way through them. He will also change us while we are going through them. I also like how the verse talked about the Lord changing the wilderness. He can do that, and I think sometimes we forget that. We may be looking at an impossible situation, and we can’t see any way through it or see anything to change. He can come in and change things in ways we couldn’t on our own. If we are trying to get through this on our own, then yes, we will be lost in the wilderness. However, if we do it with God, He will make a path right through the wilderness, and He promises in the chapter above that it will be a highway where nothing terrible can harm us.  Praise God, He is so good!

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless all those listening to this episode today. Lord, we thank you for making a way through the wilderness for us. We thank you for being right there with us in the wilderness. Lord, we thank you for changing how we see and hear you in the wilderness. If we are not open to that, Lord, I ask that you change our hearts. I ask you to help us remember all this when we are in the wilderness. Help us remember you are there. Help us not forget to look for the safe highway you created for us. Help us to remember you are protecting us. We love you, Lord, and we ask all of this in accordance with your will and Jesus’ holy name, Amen!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. Remember to check my website for all the details on my new group coaching program. I am most excited about us becoming a community where it is not just me sharing these podcasts daily. I am excited to get to know each and every one of you and help you grow closer to the Lord. I am excited to get to do life with you. I hope you will check out the website and join me. walkboldlywithjesus.com.

I look forward to meeting you again on Monday! Remember, Jesus loves you, and so do I! Have a blessed weekend!

www.findingtruenorthcoaching.com

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