And let me tell you, “when you seek the Lord, you will find Him, when you seek Him with ALL your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). ![]() Prayers that, in another season of life, I never would have had the boldness or faith to pray. So I shook the dust off my prayer journal, and I began to voice deep, heartfelt, vulnerable prayers. But we were challenged to truly cry out to the living God who hears us. And not just your everyday praying for your meal at dinner or praying for traveling mercies (not that any of those things are bad). They would not have received the beautiful law that we now know is a major factor in what kept their nation preserved and thriving until today.Ībout a month ago, we were challenged to pray. They would not have seen the parting of the Red Sea, the provision of food and water, or countless other beautiful examples of God’s mercy and grace. They would not have been intentional to “train up their children in the way they should go” (Proverbs 22:6), so that they would be prepared to go in and take the land. They would not have been nearly as mature when the time came to enter in to God’s promise. But then, I am quickly reminded that, if the Israelites had not been in the wilderness, they would have missed out on so many of the sweet miracles and promises of God. I often imagine how awful and frustrating that could have been to be one of the people that never got to see the promised land. But what if God was using that silence to grow us? What if He was doing something in our hearts that we could not have imagined or understood without that time in the “wilderness”? This passage from Hosea so clearly reminds me of when the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness for 40 years. And the waiting became so frustrating because we felt as though we were met with silence. Asking questions like, “Why have you brought us here? What should we be doing to best utilize our time each day? Are we making any sort of impact for the kingdom? If so, what are we doing right? And if not, what are we doing wrong?”īut, as I’m sure many would agree, the heart ache and frustration does not come in the asking. But what does that mean? Well for us, it has meant countless hours of asking for peace and clarity in our current situation. ![]() Over the last several months, my husband and I have been experiencing what I can only describe as a “wilderness” season. “Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.” Hosea 2:14 Written by Jenna Cherry, a core team member at Inspiring Hope Church. 4 min read Photo by Jasmin Ne / Unsplash.
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