Today’s Reading Deuteronomy 8-10
Focal Scripture: Deuteronomy 8:2 “Remember that the Lord your God led you on the entire journey these forty years in the wilderness, so that he might humble you and test you to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.”
Moses is reminding this generation of what God was up to as they wandered in the wilderness. These are strong words that resonated with the Israelites. They witnessed loved ones die in the wilderness for their unbelief. The nation saw sin after sin committed and God providing a way for forgiveness. Learning from the past is not a trait that most people do well.
The Israelites are not different. They continually make the same mistakes and Moses was pleading with them to not be like their parents. To not be a people who disobeyed and did not believe in God’s word. He then reminds them that the wandering in the wilderness was purposeful. God led them in that direction. He was not surprised by their disobedience. God used this time to humble and reveal what was in their hearts. God will lead us into places that are often difficult and these passages are a reminder of this quality.
Many believers today hold the view that God will never lead them down a path that is difficult, causes distress or may lead to their death. However, scripture does not support this view. Jesus was lead to the cross, the disciples were lead to martyrdom, Paul was jailed, beaten, shipwrecked, and then martyred. Men and women of God throughout the centuries have been humbled by God and put in situations that would reveal their faith and their heart.
I want you to be encouraged by this thought. I know that seems odd but this humbling and revealing of your heart is a great sign. It demonstrates that God loves you and is working on you. The ministry of suffering and pain is not preached on or talked about often. However, it is a season that we all will go through at some point.
If we are a people who truly believe in God’s sovereignty we also have to believe that the good and bad we experience is part of the process. God purposefully lead the nation of Israel into the wilderness and then for forty years worked on them to prepare them for the future.
God wants all of us. He wants our hearts and he wants us to be humble. Maybe you are going through a difficult season right now. You have questions and wonder what you have done wrong to suffer the way you are. We can take solace that we can trust God and his process. No matter how difficult our journey might be today. Because we know that as we follow God no matter how difficult the road he will be with us and take care of us in amazing ways.
I would rather follow God through the worst of situations than lead myself through my own thoughts.
Tomorrow I plan on reading Deuteronomy 11-13
