"She stood up and cried out to God in her distress. And with one answered prayer, He took her from barren to blessed."
I have to be honest, when I first came to New Mexico in search of a new job, I could not see anything beautiful about the desert. All that I could see was brown…brown…brown…everywhere, brown. Having grown up on the Gulf Coast of Florida, where everything was so green, so alive, I guess I was just a little spoiled. I love color, lots of color, and in my opinion, New Mexico was lacking. I wondered, “How could I ever be happy in such a barren and desolate place?’
This was one of the many “desert experiences” of my life. I’m sure that you all know what I mean; you don’t get out of this life without having those. A desert experience can be different for each of us. It’s those times in our lives when we might feel hopeless, unproductive, alone and far from God.
Hannah was one of those women mentioned in the Bible who had a desert experience. You can read her account in 1 Samuel 1:1-21. In those days, one of the few things that gave a woman value was whether or not she had children. Hannah was considered barren, which caused her great shame and anguish. And to add to that shame, she had to share a husband with another woman. (Right there you see the problem, right? What were they thinking back then?) Of course, the other wife was able to have children and she hated the attention that her husband paid to Hannah.
Now, here is a question for you…When you find yourself in the middle of a desert experience, why do you wait until you are truly desperate to start seeking God for help?
My usual response when I am in this kind of situation is to first panic, then throw a little pity-party, and then after I have exhausted myself, I stuff the remainder of my “poor little me” feelings into my “well let’s face it, Gena, you deserve it” file. And guess what, girls…after all of that ridiculous behavior, I don’t feel one bit better. Maybe, I feel a little worse, because then the shame sets in. Oh, please tell me that I am not the only one who reacts like this?
Now listen up, girls. It’s time to stand up and say “Enough is enough!” That’s what our girlfriend, Hannah, did. She shifted her eyes away from her problems and put her trust in God. She “cast” all of her pain and grief into his capable hands. It says in 1 Peter 5:7, "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." The word “cast” is an intentional throwing out with all your might, like a fisherman would do when he cast out his nets waiting expectantly for the Creator to provide a good catch.
Hannah is like the “Sunflower” that blooms in the desert. It stretches its neck high into the sky and faces the sun. All day it moves in a graceful dance following the pattern of the sun.
Just in case you are wondering if I ever got over my brown-phobia… the answer is yes. Here in the desert under turquoise skies in the shadow of a watermelon mountain, he lifted my eyes up to the Son. And there in the quiet of my soul, I heard his voice sing his sweet words of love over me. (Proverbs 12:25)
Wonderful blog, thank you!