"A Table In the Wilderness"

"...Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?"  Psalm 78:19

After an unusually difficult weekend of issues, primarily in regards to care-giving for my 93 year old mother-in-law who has dementia, I found myself running out of the door early this morning in search of some peace and quiet.  As I rounded the corner of my favorite walking place I was awe-struck by the scene awaiting me:

This Mama Doe and her fawn were peacefully grazing in the yard of an uninhabited vacation home...

They were just as curious about me as I was about them...so we stood there staring at each other...
Me...gazing at them with such joy and thanksgiving to the Lord for His kindness to me this morning...and them...wishing I would leave them alone to finish their breakfast...

Finally they had enough of looking at my funny face and decided to turn high tail and run off to greener pastures...

My heart was overflowing with joy as I watched them go...because God had heard my prayer...He knew that I needed this gift today...

Mama and fawn may never know just how much they blessed me...

(Don't you just love their white flags waving good bye??)

So, as I watched them frolicking away I felt better equipped to face my day...

Thank you, sweet friends from God's creation...

Oh wait!!! Just as I was about to turn away, here came another fawn leaping out of the woods...and actually there were two of them, but I couldn't get a picture quickly enough of the other one!  They are a part of the communal deer family here in my neighborhood.  There have been three fawns that I've been watching this summer...but I think they came from two different mothers because they aren't always all together:

(This is a picture from another day a couple of weeks ago...notice how much they've grown since then)

So...after all of this excitement, I rounded the next bend in the road and came across the picture featured at the top...here again for you:

And the first words that came to my mind was this phrase: "A Table In the Wilderness"....

I wasn't too sure where that came from so when I got back home I looked it up in the Bible and found the above reference to Psalms 78:19.  This was spoken in regards to the people of Israel when they were wandering in the wilderness and kept 

"testing God in their heart by asking for the food of their fancy.  Yes, they spoke against God: They said, "Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?"  (Psalm 78:18-19)

and the Psalmist goes on to say in verses 20-29 how God struck the rock so that the waters gushed out and the streams overflowed, and then, as if that wasn't enough, they asked if God could also provide bread and meat?  

God was pretty frustrated with these ungrateful Israelites, but He showed them His mercy again by providing manna, "the bread from heaven; men ate angels' food"  (verse 24-25) and feathered fowl to eat, so many it was like the sand of the seas; and so they "ate and were well filled..." (verse 29)  and it says in verse 32 that

"In spite of this they still sinned, and did not believe in His wondrous works."

So I thought to myself after this morning's adventure and discovering these words that I do not want to be like the ungrateful Israelites.  God demonstrated His love for me this morning by providing a gift that blessed my heart with such joy and peace that I could not keep silent. He spread His table before me in the wilderness and tenderly fed me from His Word and with His Holy Spirit. He gave me "the true bread from heaven," Jesus Christ His Son,  (see John 6:32-58)

With such a wondrous gift, how could I keep silent?  

Dear Friend, Perhaps you are also going through some difficult times and are in need of some "angels' food"... It is my prayer for you that God will direct your path to His "table in the wilderness" that He has prepared especially for you. Your place may be different than mine...His provision may be something totally unique that speaks to you personally.  Take some time out of your busy day or weariness to seek Him out.  He will not fail you.  

"Happy Trails to you, Until we meet again..."

(Roy Rogers and Dale Evans)

Driven Into the Wilderness

"Therefore, behold, I will allure her, 

Will bring her into the wilderness,

And speak comfort to her.

I will give her her vineyards from there,

And the Valley of Achor as a door of hope;

She shall sing there,

As in the days of her youth,

As in the day when she came up from the 

land of Egypt."

Hosea 2:14-15

I have been reading portions from the Old Testament book of Hosea in my devotions this past week. For biblical scholars, the theme of the book of Hosea is "Redeeming Love", primarily God's redemption of the nation of Israel...who has been likened to an adulterous wife.  I will not attempt to interpret the book here...that is not my purpose and I am no scholar.  But the point was made in my readings that in this particular passage in Hosea, God is leading Israel into the desert (wilderness) with the tenderness of a husband who tenderly loves his wife even though she has been unfaithful. His purpose in driving her there is to bring her to a place of restoration and redemption.

It caused me to pause and think about how often in my life God has led me into a type of "wilderness" or desert of soul and spirit so that He could "speak comfort" to me.  It seems as though the wilderness would be the last place we would expect to find comfort and healing...and yet that is where He leads us so that we can focus our eyes completely on Him.

This reminds me of a couple of other Bible verses that have often ministered to my bruised and battered heart:

"Be still, and know that I AM God;

I will be exalted among the nations,

I will be exalted in the earth!

The Lord of hosts is with us;

The God of Jacob is our refuge."

Psalm 46:10-11

And again:

"The LORD is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

He makes me to lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside the still waters.

He restores my soul..."

Psalm 23:1-3

I like the part in the Hosea passage that said "I will give her her vineyards from there, and the Valley of Achor (which literally means "trouble") as a door of hope;"   That sort of reminds me of the title of my blog, "Closed Doors, Open Windows"...when doors are closed to us because of "trouble" or sorrow, when we 

"walk through the valley of the shadow of death" (Psalm 23:4), "I will fear no evil; for YOU (God) are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me."

When we walk through the desert times of our lives, God gives us a "door of hope"...He comforts us.  And  Hosea says "She shall sing there, as in the days of her youth..."  Not only will she be restored and comforted, but she will actually be able to sing again...which to me is a message of triumph and victory! Singing comes from a heart that is joyful because it has been healed and revived from the valley of trouble and sorrow.

I can feel a song of hope and joy bubbling up from within my soul.  

How about you?  Have you been driven into the wilderness and walked through the Valley of Achor in your life? Have you found that door of hope and comfort that God is opening for you?  If not, "be still and Know" that God is with you. Soon you may find that you are able to sing again too. I sincerely hope so.

You might even be able to walk on the water!

Have a joyful day my friend.