remaining faithful in the wilderness

I am reading Numbers right now, and the Israelites have repeatedly groaned to Moses about being led into the wilderness from Egypt. They tell him they would rather have died when some of the other men who were with them did than be here. They ask Moses whey he brought them to this "terrible place" where there is no food and no water (Numbers 20:5).

I started thinking about how I moved out here to LA from the comfort of my home and my family. Sometimes it can seem like a wilderness here. I hate being away from my family, and especially when I'm not getting work as an actress I begin to question… 

Did I do the right thing? Is this where I am supposed to be? Why did you lead me here, God?

But that’s just the thing. God did lead me here. And I know it’s for His glory.

If I continue to seek His will for my life, he will reveal His glory just as He did for the Israelites. Okay, maybe not just like He did, but you know what I mean!

God appeared to Moses right after he listened to the Israelites complaining. It says "the glory of the Lord appeared" (Numbers 20:6). The Lord told Moses to take a rock and gather the Israelites. A rock. And he would turn that rock into water. And He did.

I know God can turn my "rock" - or what feels like a rock in my life - into a source of water.

I think sometimes it's just not about us. God wants to reveal his glory through our circumstances, through our periods of waiting and struggle through the wilderness. And sometimes it is about us in a sense that God wants to grow our character closer to His own. He wants us to learn to rely on Him, His will, His perfect timing, His provision. To always be reminded that we can't do it on our own. 

I think the Lord brings each of us into our own wilderness - or multiple wildernesses - throughout our lives. As much as the wilderness is not great fun at times, I will take the wilderness over being comfortable. Because when I get comfortable, I think, "I've got this. I can handle this. I can do this on my own." But no. I can't. 

The truth is I can't do anything on my own. Anything I do in this life is a result of the Lord working through me. 

The good news about the Lord bringing us into the wilderness? He will also bring us out of the wilderness. If we are faithful. The truth is, instead of speaking to the rock like God told Moses to do, Moses "struck the rock twice with his staff" (Numbers 20:11). Now this could be a whole other post, but for now I will simply say that because of this choice he made, Moses did not make it out of the wilderness. 

Let us be encouraged to listen to the Lord and do exactly what He tells us - not how we want to do it, but how He wants us to do it. Even when we doubt, even when the land seems barren, even when it seems He is silent. Because He is there. He hears our cries. And He is more powerful beyond that which we can fathom.

He brings water out of rocks.