The Desert Of The Christian Walk

“You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all of your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord.” Jeremiah 29:13-14a

The year was 2018.  For three weeks, I had been struggling.  With a such a busy daily schedule of homeschooling, running my four daughters to their various events and activities, teaching two classes at our local homeschool co-op, helping lead women’s ministry at church, teaching the kids at children’s church, as well as trying to keep a home clean and functional and its inhabitants fed, my plate was full. Overflowingly full.  I knew that my daily quiet time had been suffering.  It seemed that what Scripture I read left my mind immediately upon closing my Bible.  Even while reading, I was finding that I could not concentrate upon the truth found in the Word because in the back of mind would be thoughts of the next thing to get done. I was in a rat-race, and it was taking a toll on my mind, stealing my peace, and even harming my relationships… most of all, my relationship with the Lord.

Finally, I reached my breaking point. After a toss-and-turn, sleep-deprived night, I got up way before the sun on a Thursday morning and stumbled to my easy chair in the living room where I usually conducted my quiet time.  That morning, however, I could not bring myself to open my Bible.  I could not emotionally handle the thought of another unproductive, check-off-the-box Bible-reading session.  Instead, in desperation, I held my Bible up over my head and confessed to the Lord, “God, You know my heart has been far from You these last few weeks.  You and I both know I have been working in my own strength, and I am weak.  Oh, I am thirsty for you, Father.  I need You to feed me. Feed me with Your Word this morning.  I need You.”  I then lowered my Bible from over my head and placed it in my lap and quietly prayed, “Show me what I need to learn today, Lord.”  As I sat there in the quiet, the words came to my mind “Psalm 63.  Psalm 63.”  I opened my eyes having no idea what would be found in Psalm 63, but trusting that these words were from the Holy Spirit, I flipped to that chapter in Psalms, and upon reading the first verse, tears filled my eyes.

“O God, You are my God. Earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You, my body longs for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”  Psalm 63:1

This verse boldly displayed the fact that God had, indeed, heard my heart’s sincere cry and was showing up for me! He knew my longing for Him and was revealing Himself to me.  As I read the rest of that chapter, He reminded me that, like David, we as Christians all go through dry spells.  It is a part of the Christian walk!  However, in those times, we should not despair; instead, we are to be intentional to remember God’s faithfulness to us in times past.  We are to recall the times when we have “seen (Him) in the sanctuary and beheld (His) power and glory” (Ps. 63:2). Therefore, we can be greatly encouraged to know that He is still faithful, and He will most certainly “satisfy our souls with the richest of foods” from His Word (Ps.63:5).  He is always deserving of our praise, and “in (His) Name, we will lift up our hands!” (Ps. 63:4)

Our God is faithful to His children – no matter if they are experiencing the driest desert of the lushest of mountaintop-highs.  Our Father longs to be close to us and WILL show up when we seek Him with all of our hearts.  He is faithful to feed us with the truth of His Word and to refresh our souls with Living Water.  May we be intentional to remember that the Bread of Life is the ONLY thing that can truly satisfy our deepest hunger and longing.

Emily Byrd

Above All Else Podcast