Wandering The Desert

Today in sunday school and church, we talked alot about the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert. We also talked about our experiences in the "desert". It is something that I have often thought about recently. So often when I find myself between a rock and hard place, I am quick to ask "Why am I here?", "When will this be over?", and "Does God even care?".

Most people's knee jerk reaction to the last question is "Of course God cares.". But most of the time that is not a good enough answer for us. We continue ask, "Well, if God cares about us, why does He let this and this and this happen?". And with the crisis in Haiti right now, that question is in the front of everybody's minds. I don't feel qualified to fully answer that question. I think this page and this page does that question justice.

But that is besides the point I am trying to make. Perhaps instead of asking those questions, we should be asking "What is God trying to show me through all of this?" or "How can I strengthen my faith during this time?" or "How can bring God glory through my struggles?".

I feel like I am in the midst of a desert right now. And for so long I just felt sorry for myself. I asked all those questions, and some. I felt that life was unfair. I had a lot of bitterness. It was not until very recently that it hit me. Maybe God is trying to teach me something through all of this, and I have been so focused on my problem that I had been forgetting to focus on God! It is a not always easy, those feeling still creep up every now and then. But I am trying to focus on God, trying to learn what He wants me to, trying to bring Him glory through my struggles. I know that in the end, when I finally emerge from the desert, I will have learned so much more and my faith will have grown much more than if I had been spared from the desert all together.