What would I want? How would I want to be treated in a certain situation? What would I like someone to say to me if I was having a bad day? That's what Jesus expects us to do. He calls for us to treat ALL people the same way that we would like to be treated. When we love like He loves, we acknowledge that each person we encounter is a person that Jesus died to save. When we show honor to one another, we recognize that the image of God is imprinted upon each person. How often do we give other people the benefit of the doubt when they do something irritating to us? Do we ever hope that someone gets payback when they have hurt us? Are we in the habit of giving a kind answer when folks are rude to us? Consider your answer to each of these question. Jesus commands us to live a certain way - the Jesus way. How well are you doing that?

Have you ever had a time where it seemed like the Lord was so close that all you had to do was whisper His name and He was right there and answered right then?

But then the time came when you left Him one message after another, and He seemed to have totally disappeared from your life. Maybe that’s where you are now and your question, which you want to shout in the stillness, is the cry of many who find themselves in a dry and difficult place: “God, where are You?!”

I experienced my first wilderness season as a young believer while living in Dallas, Texas, during the early eighties. As I naïvely entered this barren season, I felt like I had been abandoned by God. Before this, all I had needed to do was cry out and the Lord would instantly respond. I remember Him quickly answering the most trivial of requests. His presence was so near, evident, and strong.

Now, I just could not figure out what was happening. I was on my knees, day after day, crying out, “God, what is going on? It seems like You are a million miles away!”

During this time, I kept reviewing my life and asking, “What terrible sin have I committed?”

Well, the truth was, of course, that like every person on the planet, I periodically slipped into sin, but I also was quickly repenting and asking for the forgiveness that Jesus offers. To my knowledge, there was not some persistent, willful sin in my life.

“God, why aren’t You talking to me anymore?” I asked on one dry day after another. As the heavens felt like brass, I found myself at a critical juncture—would I give up my pursuit of God, feeling rejected or forgotten? Or would I press through the resistance with a passionate pursuit of the lover of my soul?

I chose the latter and was not disappointed. The wilderness is where we will discover what we truly hunger for—God, or the things of this world? If we allow Him to, the wilderness is where God will strip away ungodly desires and will create in us a heart that desires Him above all else.