I was listening today to one of the Vista Cafe (c) segments from Incubator Creative Group. They started talking about John Wesley (one of my favorites!) and the reason people came to watch him was that he asked God to "Set him on fire" and people came to watch him burn. That moved to the "burning bush" which Moses encountered. At that point my mind begain thinking and here's what came next...
In my mind I moved ahead to Moses and the Children of Israel in the desert. The burning bush was where Moses got his call. The plan was to liberate the Hebrews and take them to the promised land. But it took 40 years for them to get there. Did it have to? Maybe, maybe not. (but is was based on their obedience and trust or lack of that) Then I began to make it personal.
Some of us feel like we've been wondering for 40 years in the "desert" waiting to get to where we are going to. (just had an 'ah ha!' at this point) The desert for the Children of Israel wasn't that they were not going anywhere, because God was testing them to see if they would be faithful. There's always a process, a kind of desert to go through. Incubator has an Application Process which can be confused for: "why did you drag us into the desert to die" feel. ;) But it really is a "testing" time of sorts. Amazingly biblical. So many of us (artists) think that we arrive at the promise land when we get to do our first concert or have enough of a following that we can record our first album/CD/professional digital audio recording or have an "official" tour. (I'm kind of running out of 'what would come next kind of stuff') Everyone wants to get to the Promised Land, not everyone wants to go through the desert of testing. It is in the desert that we learn patience and endurance. We learn to keep plodding and growing. We learn not to just stand and watch because the sands of time will just bury us there. We learn to trust and be obedient. We learn that what we've come through prepares us for what's ahead. We learn in the desert. We apply all of that learning in the Promised Land. What is your Promised Land? Are you trying to dodge the desert? Don't. Ask God to continue to lead you, just as He did when He took them by the hand and provided for them and prepared them for their destination.
