I feel like there are a lot of books of the Bible that don't get enough recognition; Philemon is one of them. And I feel like this happens because not only do people often accidentally skip over them because Bible pages are so thin (I mean come on finding a small one page book is like finding a needle in a haystack sometimes), but also because often I think people write them off because they are so small. So, the other day when it came up on my reading plan, I was intrigued.

Today, I was listening to a sermon by Ben Stuart (which by the way, if you haven't heard him speak, look him up NOW) and he was speaking on Exodus and the wilderness. He discussed all of these times the Israelites would get into a situation where it looked like God wasn't meeting their needs and as a result they did the only logical thing we do in those situations: they complained. As I was listening I was reminded of a song from Veggie Tales.

When you grow up in a Christian household it's 100% required that you watch Veggie Tales. As a result, you will never forget the words to the catchy songs. I think that's sort of the point...for kids. But nonetheless, I remembered the words and they were this, "keep walking." Now, in that episode of Veggie Tales, that is a part of a song the soldiers (also known as the French Peas aka: the sassiest vegetables on the show which means they're obviously my favorite) sing these words to God's people who are walking around Jericho. Definitely discouraging because the words that follow are, "but you won't knock down our wall," but don't worry my point is the opposite of that. I mention it because it got me thinking about those two words and then I got a picture of what wilderness looks like when we stay sitting and pouting, and what it looks like when we actually keep walking.

The powerhouse that is Joyce Meyer always uses the Israelites as a picture when talking about wilderness mindsets, aka: thoughts that keep us in the wilderness. She expresses that what was supposed to have been a two week journey was 40 years. They stayed in the wilderness because they kept stopping to pout when things weren't going their way. Now, the Israelites aren't alone in this because we all do this. In fact, I found myself in danger of this yesterday.

When we stop in the wilderness, it's because we've lost our hope. Soloman says in Proverbs that, "hope deferred makes the heart sick," (Proverbs 13:12). We see our circumstances and we see that, "God's not meeting my needs," and we give up. We quit. We set up camp and we intend to stay there because, "what's the point?" But I wonder if we would do that if we knew that breakthrough was right around the next bend.

Imagine yourself walking through the wilderness in your life right now; for some of you this may not be that hard to imagine given that it's a reality. Perhaps your wilderness is family issues, perhaps you aren't seeing fruit in something that you've been working toward for years, maybe it's an addiction or hang up that you've been fighting all of your life. Whatever it is, imagine yourself walking through that feeling every thorn, tripping over every branch, getting lost, finding your way back only to get lost again. It's been hard. You finally get to yet another obstacle and you're faced with a choice: do you cut your losses and give up (it's not working anyway right?). Or do you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and keep walking?

In Ben Stuart's sermon, he told a story about a time when he was hiking in the Grand Canyon and he wanted to go off and see a really huge waterfall that was about 6 miles off or so. So he began walking and he felt like he had been walking for ages. As he continued he started to get worried that he was getting lost and then panic set in. As soon as panic set in, he fell over and into some thorns. What was interesting is that when he chose to get up and keep walking, the waterfall he had been looking for was right around the corner. But when did his journey get hard? When he started doubting his destination.

Here's the bottom line: the journey that God's called to you isn't going to be easy. In fact, a lot of times it's the opposite of easy. Also, a lot of times it's long; EXCRUCIATINGLY long. You may fall into some thorns, you may doubt your direction, and you may feel like quitting. Don't. Your breakthrough may be just around the corner; and boy will you be glad you kept walking.

"God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." - James 1:12




If you want to listen to Ben's podcast, click the picture below!

Also, check out the French Peas in action #same: