Desert Reflections

Greetings, dear friends, as you begin a new week. I trust you had a great weekend! Here's a post from the Pilgrim Scribblings archives that, hopefully, will be an encouragement to you.

Sitting By the Lake

What a beautiful Lord's day! A clear blue sky, a warm breeze and a place to sit by the lake at Elim Lodge, a place of refreshment! As I sat by Pigeon Lake watching Matthew and Nathan swim and play on the beach, I was reading Nancie Carmichael's excellent book, Praying for Rain. This is my second reading as I went through it a year or two ago. As I read her chapter on depression there were a couple of quotes I couldn't wait to share so I called in this "audio post" using my cell phone. I added the text you're reading now later after I arrived home.

As we encounter our desert experiences on life's pilgrimage we are not alone! The One who Himself was tempted in the desert (yet sinned not), walks with us through our droughts and desperations. We can choose to make these desert places a meeting place where we encounter the living Christ and then, as we emerge from our trials, we can "comfort others with the comfort wherewith we ourselves have been comforted".

"Blessed are those whose strength is in You, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion." - Psalm 84:5-7 (NIV)

Comforting Words

Dear friends, I've returned from my travels and I've missed writing these daily notes of encouragement. I'm blessed as I post these thoughts and I trust that you are as well. I'll try to make up for the days I've missed. Have a great weekend and I trust that you will be enriched in your spirit as you worship the King on Sunday!

He's Leading the Way
(Comforting words by Moses)

"Do not be terrified, do not be afraid of them. The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as He did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, and in the desert. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place. In spite of this, you did not trust in the Lord your God, who went ahead of you on your journey, in fire by night and in a cloud by day, to search out places for you to camp and to show you the way you should go." - Deuteronomy 1:29-31

He still leads the way today! Why do we fear? He is the Lord our God and He bids us follow Him.
Be encouraged today, dear friends!

Consolation In Anxious Moments

My friend, there's a verse in one of the Psalms that comes to mind time and time again and I find great comfort as I think of the psalmist's testimony. The rendering which I first read was from the New International Version (NIV) so this wording has the most meaning to me historically:

"When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul." - Psalm 94:19

Other translations don't seem quite as meaningful to me although a paraphrase of several verses from this psalm from The Message is good:

"Who stood up for me against the wicked? Who took my side against evil workers? If God hadn't been there for me, I never would have made it. The minute I said, "I'm slipping, I'm falling, "your love, God, took hold and held me fast. When I was upset and beside myself, you calmed me down and cheered me up." (verses 16-19)

Are you overly concerned about a situation today, dear friend? Are financial woes seeking to bury you? Is there a relationship that is strained and is seemingly beyond repair? Take those anxieties to the Great Consoler, the God of all comfort, the One who is big enough to deal with any and every problem. Find consolation in the everlasting arms of Abba Father today. He understands and He cares. TRUST HIM!