PSALM 107:35-38: “He turns a wilderness into pools of water, And dry land into watersprings. There He makes the hungry dwell, That they may establish a city for a dwelling place, And sow fields and plant vineyards, That they may yield a fruitful harvest. He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly; And He does not let their cattle decrease.” NKJV‭‭

OBSERVATION: What do you do when you find yourself in the wilderness of life? The wilderness in life can be many different things. We can find ourselves in a wilderness of lost vision, prolonged difficulty, disappointment and depression, or loss and sorrow. Yet, every wilderness has the same thing in common, it produces a yearning and a thirst for presence of the Lord. David cried out to the Lord, in the midst of his personal wilderness –

• “O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭63:1‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

The wilderness is where the believer is called to rise up in faith. Faith is not the call to pretend that everything is ok. Many have misunderstood faith as putting on a happy face and saying things we don’t really feel. This is not faith, this is denial. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen – proceeding from an honest heart that is openly transparent before God and man. Faith acknowledges the reality of the situation, but refuses to camp there. Faith looks beyond the immediate barrenness – unto the promised fruitfulness of God’s provision.

This is the message of Psalm 107. If you read it in its entirety you will find the same story, repeated over and over again, and with the same outcome. In the midst of every wilderness that life has to offer, God is greater! He hears the cries of His children and He leads them through the wilderness into His victory. He never leaves them lost and alone! And He does something even more than that – He transforms each personal wilderness into a blessing and a deeper and more meaningful walk of faith!

• “He turns a wilderness into pools of water, And dry land into watersprings. There He makes the hungry dwell, That they may establish a city for a dwelling place, And sow fields and plant vineyards, That they may yield a fruitful harvest. He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly; And He does not let their cattle decrease.”

Every person that is delivered in Psalm 107,was not delivered because of their goodness, or their positive confession. They were delivered because they cried out to God in the midst of their distress, and God in His great love and mercy, delivered them. In brokenness, in sickness, in sorrow, and in distress – God delivered them. This is the testimony of the Scriptures, the inheritance of those whose faith is in Christ Jesus alone! God turns our wilderness into pools of water, our dry lands into water springs, and he establishes a place for us to dwell safely in His presence!

So, like the Psalmist, we are called to look back on the times when the Lord has been faithful in our lives and give Him praise. This gives us both the perspective and the faith to face our current situation with both calm and assurance. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, it is the evidence of things not seen. We trust in Him, because of what He has done, what He is doing, and what He will continue to do through His wonderful mercy and love! Like the Apostle Paul we proclaim,

• “Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead, who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us, you also helping together in prayer for us, that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the gift granted to us through many.” ‭‭II Corinthians‬ ‭1:9-11‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

So, as we walk through the wilderness, we do not walk alone, and we do not walk without hope!  We walk with the enduring promise of our Lord Jesus Christ who said – “I will never leave you nor forsake you!”  And we walk in the full assurance of faith that – “He who promised is faithful, and He will do it!”  This causes us to remember the faithfulness of God, and to offer the sacrifice of praise – as with the Psalmist, we proclaim…

• “Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,”. ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭107:1-2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

In Jesus Name!