Your Wilderness Is Bigger Than You!Sýnishorn

“Dad, can you pick up Pokémon cards at home and bring them to school so I can play with them?”

My son called me earlier this week and shared this request. After silently laughing, I informed him that I would not be driving the hour-round trip from my office to our house and back to his school to bring him his cards. We also discussed the “problems” that warranted interrupting Dad in a meeting at work!

As much as I chuckled when I sat back down in my meeting, I can’t blame my son for his response to this problem. My world has shrunk down to my current crisis on far too many occasions to count. I want everyone to drop what they’re doing and solve my issue. My world gets very small when I have a challenge that is bigger than me.

Our current plight can be all-consuming when we end up in the wilderness. Our tunnel vision can fix our eyes fully on our frustration with where we are and our desire to be somewhere else.

I wonder if Moses felt this way when he ended up in the wilderness of Midian after fleeing Egypt. After being raised in the home of the Pharaoh by one of his daughters, Moses struck down and killed an Egyptian who was beating one of his fellow Hebrews. When he realized his life was in danger, he ran and didn’t stop until he reached a well in Midian.

For the next 40 years, Moses built a life in the desert. He met a woman named Zipporah, got married, and tended the sheep of her father, Jethro. What questions did Moses ask while caring for the sheep during those long days and nights? Did he keep praying for his people? Did he ask God, “What is your purpose for me?” The Bible doesn’t give us answers to those questions.

The Bible tells us what happened one day when Moses had an incredible encounter with God. In Exodus 3, Moses stumbled on a bush that was on fire but not burning up. Once Moses turned his attention to the bush, God turned His attention to Moses and shared amazing words. God spoke about His plan to deliver His people from Egypt, using Moses as His primary instrument and mouthpiece. God taught Moses a new name for Himself.

In an instant, Moses’ experience in the wilderness changed. Whether he knew it or not, God had prepared Moses for this moment for 40 years.

The second truth about the wilderness I want you to know is this: Your wilderness is not just about you. Moses may have been asking, “God, what am I doing here?” or “God, why did you let me go through all of this?” But standing at that burning bush, his wilderness experience had a brand new context and purpose. He would lead the Hebrews to freedom and then through a wilderness, just as he had journeyed through a wilderness season in Midian.

In the same way, your wilderness is bigger than you because God will use what happens here to impact others. You may not have a burning bush moment and likely won’t be responsible for leading millions of people. (I pray I never have to carry the burden Moses did.) But, your wilderness will affect others. God uses the wilderness to prepare people for extraordinary callings with incredible impact!

As easy as it is to think only about yourself, I know you care for the people around you. You want your life to count and long to live for a grander purpose than your comfort. What if your wilderness is about preparing you for something bigger than you can comprehend right now? What if your wilderness is a way to learn to love others, where you receive a gift you can one day share with them?

I don’t want to minimize what you’re going through today. But I do know the struggles I’ve faced in the wilderness. One of my biggest temptations when I’m in the wilderness is thinking this pain is wasted. When I read a story like Moses’ experience in Exodus 2-3, I remember that I serve a God who wastes nothing!

God will not waste your wilderness. Something is happening here that is much bigger than you!

I’m excited to share an encouraging story with you tomorrow. The wilderness can feel isolating, but one of the most famous prophets in the Bible had a wilderness experience that will open your eyes!