Many years ago, I was in the midst of asking God what direction my life and ministry was headed. There are many circumstances causing relational upheavals and many thoughts going through my head causing me to engage in spiritual warfare with the lies of the enemy. And just how does one do that? They take up the full armor of God - the arsenal of spiritual weaponry He gives to each and every new creation - and they simply replace the lies of the enemy with the truth of God’s Word. In other words, I went about the business of renewing my mind!
I believe it was His promptings and tuggings that were causing the foundational questions of my heart and that the enemy - the Liar - was bombarding my mind with unrighteous and selfish thoughts. The confusion this brought to my mind led me into some serious times where I felt like a man dying of thirst in the middle of an endless desert. The conclusion I came to was simple - and you have heard me say this so many times through the years: God wastes nothing. Not even times of confusion and not even the dry, alone times in the deserts of life.
I realize and recognize that God allows dry and searching times to cause me to see my need for Him. This renews the way I think and, rather than throw my hands up in despair and exasperation, I become drawn to seek Jesus all the more…because He goes through those desert times WITH me!
I am more willing to follow Him – even if following Him leads me through a desert, all alone. The truth is this: He will not leave me or forsake me. He has sent the Holy Spirit to walk with me and talk with me. I need not be dry even if I live in the desert. Bless the, Lord!
Isaiah 55:1-3 NASB says,
1 "You there! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
And you who have no money come, buy and eat.
Come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without cost.
2 "Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And delight yourself in abundance.
3 "Incline your ear and come to Me.
Listen, that you may live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
[According to] the faithful mercies shown to David.”
Isaiah 55:1-3 NASB
Reality is that, even in the middle of nowhere moments of our lives, God is there with us! We have but to acknowledge His presence by faith and choose to believe that truth. Freedom comes as a result. Fear and anxiety are cast down by the love of God and our thoughts are renewed in the process. Every feeling we have comes directly from a thought we think. By focusing on the truth of God’s Word - the truth that He is with us and loves us massively - we change the way we think…and when we change the way we think, we change the way we feel.
Let’s take good long drinks from the fountain of God’s Living Water today. Just allow Him to refresh and replenish the dry and thirsty places in your heart and mind. We have but to ask.
Dennis Jernigan
Listen to The Dennis Jernigan Podcast version of this teaching and hear the song You Are Living Water as an encouragement to your soul.
Photo courtesy of https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2020/07/03/10/28/waterfall-5365926_1280.jpg