Wandering in the Desert

As a young lad growing up, I learned many stories from the Bible. One such story is about the children of Israel and their forty year trip wandering through the desert. What stood out to me were all the amazing instances of overcoming impossible odds, epic battles and the countless victories and survival despite the harshest of elements. Despite all this, the journey was frequently interrupted by periods of complaining and condemnation with occasional brief episodes of rebellion. If you are anything like me, perhaps you were led to wonder why, despite an abundance of miracles, the Israelites seemed to continually show a lack of faith whenever confronted by various obstacles or difficulties.

Right from the start, beginning with Moses and the Burning Bush, I would find myself scratching my head in puzzlement. Here, despite an obvious miracle, we find Moses arguing and resisting. God is asking him to do something, telling Moses that He will be with him and is promising the successful outcome. Even then, Moses resists and wants God to find someone else. To my way of thinking, I believed that if I clearly heard the voice of God coming from a burning bush (especially one that was not being consumed as it burned) I'd do as asked.

Next, there is the actual journey. This began with the Egyptian pharaoh’s grudging release of the Israelites from a lengthy period of slavery. This release to leave was granted only after numerous pleadings of Moses and Aaron plus a series of miraculous plagues that the Egyptians had been subjected to. The final straw, for the pharaoh, was the Passover in which all the first-born of the Egyptians were killed while all the Israelites that followed God’s instructions were spared. To my way of thinking, this would be a pretty convincing start to the journey and leave no doubt that God would remain with them.

What followed was a series of remarkable and miraculous events. To just name a few there was:

- The parting of the Red Sea

- The destruction of the Egyptian army that pursued them

- The daily visible presence of God (pillar of cloud by day – fire by night)

- All their daily needs met (provision of food and water throughout the journey and clothing and shoes that did not wear out).

All this (and much more) should have been ample evidence that they had nothing to fear…and yet we read of their many instances of complaining. It was this lack of faith and constant struggle against God’s plans for them when faced by obstacles, that turned a relatively short trip into a 40 year epic journey. When faced by challenges where the solution wasn’t immediately obvious, they were known to say that they were better off in Egypt and that Moses had brought them into the desert to perish.

While most people are aware the journey took forty years, some may not realize that the first opportunity to move into the Promised Land came after only about two and a half years. This was when they were camped close to the Promised Land and Moses sent 12 spies, ahead of the main group. They went into the land as scouts to help the Israelites prepare to move in and take what God had promised them. Ten of the spies brought back a negative, fear-filled report of giants and huge armies in the land. Despite all the amazing miracles and victories they had witnessed during the journey up to this point, they said it couldn’t be done and recommended against going forward. However, two of the spies (Caleb and Joshua) advocated they move forward in faith into the land and believed God would deliver as He had promised. The Israelites chose to accept the report of the ten negative spies and rebelled at going forward. Therefore God sent them to the desert until all those 20 years of age and over – except for Caleb and Joshua - died off. The additional thirty-seven and a half years were because the Israelites chose not to accept God’s guidance and protection.

Their long journey ended with Joshua leading the Israelites into the land as promised. God did as He had promised – He helped them defeat their enemies and gave them the land. Thus, in a much abbreviated form, we have the story of the Exodus from Egypt to the Promised Land of Canaan. End of story…right?

Ah, not so fast. It wasn't until much later in my life, that I began to realize that there is a parallel to be drawn, between the Israelites wandering, and life as it is today. My own life experience would certainly suggest this is the case. On a broader scale, how many times has a very similar story been repeated throughout our time here on this planet? I would suggest that the story of the Exodus really helps illustrate some things about human nature. There are many lessons to be learned and warnings to be mindful of. Because of the choices we make, we can spend our own prolonged period wandering and complaining within in our own wilderness. This truth applies both individually and collectively.

We know that a great human weakness is the failure to learn the lessons of history and therefore we become doomed to repeat them – sometimes over and over again. This was true for the Israelites and it was also true for those generations to follow. It should be obvious that even today, thousands of years later; there are lessons still to be learned – sometimes with painful consequences.

Even in the face of conclusive proof, doubts and fears often hold sway. Overcoming one's fears is difficult. Education by learning the facts about that which is feared is a start, but by itself it is not enough. Knowing is not the same as doing, and learning the facts about something is only one piece of the puzzle for overcoming doubt and fear. Action is also required. While the statement, “the truth shall set you free” is a fact, we need to recognize that freedom is a concept that must be exercised and acted upon. Without action we will remain just as stuck.

It seems one of the first obstacles to confront and overcome is that of instant gratification versus patiently working toward a worthwhile goal. Our culture seems driven, in many ways, by the desire for “instant gratification.” The desire to obtain or do something NOW is a powerful motivating factor; and it is costing us dearly. This “satisfy yourself now and pay later,” approach is resulting in huge and growing personal as well as national debt. It is also resulting in sometimes rash decision making which, while possibly satisfying in the short term, can ultimately lead to painful consequences resulting from poorly considered actions.

This dynamic of sacrificing patience in favour of instant gratification and self-appeasement is not only at work in a monetary sense, i.e. choices that result in mounting debt; it is also true in the long-term physical, emotional and spiritual sense as well. Such poor choices often result in painful consequences that are simply the result of engaging in behaviour that is destructive or damaging. When I look at the personal costs I’ve accumulated in my own life over the years, I can bear testimony to this fact. Some of the choices I made as a much younger person have resulted in debts I’ve had to pay and must continue paying to this day.

One lesson I’m beginning to understand (perhaps I’m just a slow learner) is that when effort precedes reward, the outcome is usually satisfying because the choices are more wisely made and can be enjoyed for quite a long time. On the other hand, anytime reward precedes effort, the resulting satisfaction very rarely lasts as long as the resulting debt or any of the other consequences.

Another obstacle to face and overcome is holding on to old ways even when God has better ways and plans for us. Albert Einstein is said to have defined insanity as, “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” This was a very keen observation of a very common human tendency. We can see evidence of this form of insanity throughout history (including the time of the Exodus) and extending through to today. This is due in part at least, to how change is perceived, the resistance to change and the comfort people often express in continuing with the familiar.

Throughout my professional career working as a nurse in a mental health setting, I could see this dynamic at work on a daily basis. It often led to some very serious and chronic problems. People with long histories of dysfunction and distress would often be able to cite what they needed to change in their life in order to resolve some very destructive problems. Yet they would continue resisting those necessary changes. Often they would begin a statement with, “I know I need to stop _____” or they might begin with, “I really need to start _____” However, even when confronted with critical advice about necessary changes - along with dire warnings of what would happen if they didn’t change, they still would often fail to follow through. Knowing and doing are two different things.

God, who knows us better than anyone, any professional advisor/worker, or even better than we know our selves has something better in mind for us and a plan to help us get there. He doesn’t stop us from determinedly continuing on our own way if we so choose. But He does let us know what to expect if we continue on the path we have chosen. He is patient with us even after we run up against the same problems over and over again. He gently lets us know that He does have a better way. He invites us to follow His plan. When I look at it in this manner, I find it hard to be too critical of the Israelites for I’m really not much different.

Another major stumbling block is having a sense of entitlement which destroys the ability to recognize one's blessings and experience gratitude. Every sunrise is a blessing. It becomes an entitlement when I begin to complain about how early I have to wake up in order to see it. How soon the things we once felt grateful for quickly become the things we expect. How easy it is to complain about the things that, not so very long ago, we were once thankful to receive. This happens when we allow showers of blessings to become lists of expectations and entitlements.

In the story of the Exodus, Israel had all their basic daily needs met. Their food, water, clothing and safety were all assured. In return, their own responsibilities were clearly spelled out for them. In terms of “job security” (using the language of today) this would appear to be the ideal arrangement or “contract.” The daily blessings in their lives were obvious. We see time and time again the complaining, doubt, fear and failure to comply on the part of such a blessed people. Miraculous occurrences could no longer be truly appreciated or enjoyed once they became something that was simply taken for granted. During their journey, Israel seemed to suffer every time they failed to regard themselves as a truly blessed people but instead regarded themselves as an entitled people.

I recognized this dynamic very quickly in the exodus of Israel but it took much, much longer before I began to see the very same dynamic at work within myself. However, while it took a while to see the connection, my life experience does parallel that of the Israelites in a number of ways:

- Too many times I can find myself doubting, complaining and failing to be thankful.

- There are many times when I find myself doing something ill-advised, on the one hand, or else failing to do some things that I know I should do, on the other.

- Then there are the times when I allow myself to become overwhelmed with fear and doubt because I’ve lost sight of God’s gifts, grace, mercy and guidance…despite the fact that I may have just recently been thankful for those very same things!

In my own life, my daily needs have been met and I’ve experienced much to be thankful for. I know that my time here will be limited and that there will be troubles and challenges ahead – this is life and true for everyone. However, to meet life’s challenges, I have been blessed with good judgment, intelligence and some excellent guidelines for living my life so as to make the best of things to come. I’ve also been assured that I’ll get all the help I need to get me through the difficulties that lie ahead and will never have to face more than I’m able to endure. As a Christian, I view all these blessings and assurances as gifts from God, given out of love, and sealed by the life, death and resurrection of Christ Jesus. With all this in mind, I’m able to move onward and need not remain forever stuck, wandering in the desert.