Part two: dependency upon Him
In a wilderness season sometimes it seems like the situation or circumstance contradicts the nature and character of God and His very word. I know from my own story, intimate history with God, and from the written Word who my God is, but sometimes I find myself in a wilderness where my trust in Him is being shaken. In these moments I find I have an opportunity to either doubt His nature and character or to grow my trust in Him.
You have probably found yourselves in a similar situation. You know God from His word and your personal story, but sometimes in the wilderness you begin to wrestle. You find yourself struggling to trust Him or being tempted to forget His nature and Character.
The wilderness isn’t a self imposed dry land, it is a God-ordained place. There is a difference between a wilderness and a dry and weary land. The wilderness may be hard and painful, however, it is also filled with intimacy. It is a sweet and precious time in His presence. It is the place reserved for the obedient sons and daughters to grow. It holds with it a testing and trial that serves to disciple and train us. It comes with pain but it yields massive fruitfulness in the end. On the other hand, a dry and weary land is the result of rebellion. It is a desert land; one without grace, favor or blessing. It is the land of the self promoters and prideful achievers. Here the rebellious, unregenerate, and prideful dwell, for God resists them and the land yields no fruit. This land is full of heartache, pain, and opposition, much of it self-inflicted by foolishness and rebellion against God’s Word. Only the repentant, who submit to God’s will, will escape this dry and weary land.
The wilderness may appear stagnant, as if there is no progress. A seemingly endless hallway full of uncertainty, one may feel adrift without knowing their final destination. Here, trust is put to the test, and our satisfaction and motivation gets revealed.
The nation of Israel experienced a wilderness season where they were trained and tested. Ultimately God was teaching them to trust Him.
““The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God.’” Exodus 3:18
God command the king of Egypt to let His people go into the wilderness, so they could worship Him. His initial invitation to Israel was to journey into the wilderness. Even though it would have been an 11 day journey from Egypt to the promise land, God led them out into the wilderness to prepare them.
“On the twentieth day of the second month of the second year, the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle of the covenant law. Then the Israelites set out from the Desert of Sinai and traveled from place to place until the cloud came to rest in the Desert of Paran. They set out, this first time, at the Lord’s command through Moses.” Numbers 10:11-13
During their year in the wilderness, Israel was trained and prepared for the promised land under God’s guidance. Moses appointed leaders from each tribe to govern over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Then, at Mount Sinai, the law and feasts were established, the tabernacle and its objects were constructed, priests and Levites were set apart, offerings were taught, and the Lord’s glory cloud hovered above the tabernacle. Moses imparted the Spirit that was on him to 70 elders and officials, and divisions of military forces from each tribe were formed. Finally, the cloud rose to signal the first march at the Lord’s command, and the tribes were sent to explore the land.
The wilderness was a preparation season for the promise. It was a God ordained season, and a time where God was calling them into a greater trust and dependency upon His character and nature. They were to come out of that wilderness into the promise land leaning upon Him as their beloved. The wilderness was to teach them dependency upon His presence. It was His presence that they discovered in the wilderness. It was His presence in Israel’s midst as a burning pillar of fire and a glowing cloud that set them apart as His people and was the defining mark upon them as a holy nation as they entered into the promise land. But they rebelled, and consequently were denied access to the promise land for 40 years. The Bible states that lack of trust was the cause of this. Instead of growing in unwavering trust and dependency they remained in unbelief and were shut out from inheriting the promise land.
We all experience these moments where God leads us through wilderness transitions to prepare us for prophetic fulfillment, just as He did with Israel from Egypt to the Promise Land. These transitions are transformational. Life is full of these mini transitions of transformation. We will experience renewal and repentance cycles over and over again in this life. We must rely on God throughout these experiences and grow in trust, leading to greater reliance on Him and His presence. As a result, we can progress into the promised land with Jesus.
In the wilderness, we encounter God, receive training and testing, form Intimacy and dependency with Him, and learn more about His character and nature. What we need to know, is that God works to teach us dependency and trust in the wilderness and He will prove His character and nature to us. God is the promise giver (nature) and He’s faithful (character) to honor his promises. He is 100% dependable. We can bank everything on Him. His character and Nature is reliable and sure.
There can be a challenge in this though because his promises are not the goal. They are a fruit of the goal which is Him! When our perspective gets off center and more focused on the promises we’ve been given above the promiser himself, impatience and disappointment and frustration can creep in. This is a sure sign that the flames of first love are dying. He himself is the goal and our great reward. As Bernard of Clairvaux wrote so long ago “One who loves God truly asks no other recompense than God Himself; for if he should demand anything else it would be the prize that he loved and not God.”
In the wilderness Moses fellowshipped with God face to face and Israel was invited into the same. In Exodus 33 Moses and God had a conversation where God promised Moses that His presence would go with them. Moses response fo God is stunning. He says, “if your presence doesn’t go up with us, then do not send us up form here.” Essentially he was saying, “I’d rather the wilderness with you than the promise fulfilled without you.” He had learned the lesson of the wilderness. He boldly declared, “It isn’t what you have to give that I want. It is you that I want. Any promise land or promise fulfilled without your presence is no prize for me. You are my reward. You are my prized possession.”
This kind of attitude is what God works for us in the wilderness. Our dependency. God is so committed to what He is doing in us. He is committed to teach us intimacy and relationship. The wilderness (the in between of the promise given and the promise fulfilled) serves to test and teach us that ultimately, a promise fulfilled with our His presence isn’t worth having. In the supposed delay and trial, He gets to our heart to truly test if He is enough. If His presence is truly all we want. The Promise land is just a bonus.
In the wilderness we must learn to put our trust in Him and let him take first place. In the delay, in the waiting for the promise, is His presence enough for us? God is a God of process. The finish line isn’t his goal. Our anchored trust in Him is the goal. Dependency and intimacy with His presence is the goal. The process of engaging with His character and nature in the wilderness is what readies us for the promise!
God is responsible for our success. He is the promiser. He is dependable. He is the one who promised and he is always faithful to work the promise out in us to completion. As we keep our attention and affection upon Him, He’ll bring us to where we need to be. In the wilderness we are invited into a trust and dependency upon God. We have the opportunity to be trained to trust in His nature and character. To get anchored in Him.
The process to the promise or the Prophetic potential to prophetic fulfillment is a relational trust journey. We cannot realize His promises through our own actions, but by being attentive. Yes and Amen is the key to God’s promises – not Go and Do. He is only looking for our yes. How we steward what He shows us, is by saying yes to Him. Just agree with Him. The path to promise is sitting and listening to Him. He is the means to any plans He shows us. Our job is to remain, sit and listen, and be still. He will do the heavy lifting as we move to the pace of relationship with Him and with the body. Prophetic Revelation is rapid. But the prophetic fulfillment is progressive. It is our daily interaction and discovery of His nature, beauty, and will that gives us all we need in life. The journey to everything is a journey to His feet. Every promise of God is found there.
Trust Him in the wilderness. Every word He speaks comes with an invitation to trust Him. The gifts He gives, be it anointing, assignment, ability, abundance, or prophetic promise will get heavy and become a burden outside of and apart from Him. The process of waiting refines our trust and Purifies our character. In the waiting, in the wilderness, we have the opportunity to show God that it is Him that we love not what He has to give. The testing often is the proving that we want Him above the promise.
A great question to ask Him in the wilderness is: What aspect of your character and nature are you wanting to reveal to me and be for me right now?
By Micah Level