Wilderness of our Spirits

Do you struggle with this human journey? I know I do. And so did the most spiritual being, having a human experience–Jesus. One of his periods of struggles happened before his ministry began. He went into the wilderness (sometimes translated as desert) for 40 days and nights to contemplate and plan for his launch of a new world order.

Scriptures from Matthew and Luke tell us during his wilderness tenure, Jesus fasted. At the end of his time there, he was hungry and weak and Satan/the devil appeared to challenge him with three temptations. The tired Jesus did not succumb and after Satan departed, angels came and comforted him.

Matthew 4:  ² And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. ³ And the tempter came…¹¹ Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.

Besides Satan’s temptations, the scriptures don’t provide a lot of details. The part where he fasted and “he was very hungry,” I translate to mean he drank water and ate enough to stay alive, leaving him weak, and I suppose thinner. Anyway, he had a LOT to contemplate and plan for this humanity project he was about to initiate. He was alone, solidifying and strengthening his spirit with God through retrospection and prayer-communication. He was embarking on bringing a different way of acting and thinking to the establishment. Do you think he knew what his ultimate sacrifice of his self would be? From the wilderness, did he ask, “Why?” or did he accept all that would be his future’s fate?

Forty days and nights of retrospection. Forty days and nights of searching for strength of spirit. I suspect the wilderness/desert was barren. Which means he also had to deal with the elements of rain, sunshine, and wind, right?. There could have been a scorpion or two to contend with. Do you think he wore a hat so he wouldn’t get sunburned? Or found a cave where he could sleep? Was there a creek for him to bathe?

This was not an easy place to be.

We all experience difficult periods where life and our spirits feel like a barren wilderness. Times when where we are physically or emotionally, is not an easy place to be. The stings of life’s scorpions come at us from multiple directions. We become tired, thirsty, and hungry for a contented stronger spirit. When our spiritual core is not in order, we become depleted and weary. We need a steadfast, spiritual center to thrive. Like Jesus, we do this by communing with our higher power, alone, in the original sanctuary of God–nature.

A few years ago, I had a very barren spirit. I knew if I was going to move forward in life on solid emotional footing, I needed some therapeutic time alone. I went to a wonderful 110-acre place called Well of Mercy, a beautiful place full of trees, flora, and walking trails. I spent three June days and two nights there. It was pleasant temperatures, and no scorpions. I wandered within the woods; sat by the creek; and walked the labyrinth. I did a deep-dive search for spiritual rejuvenation. I fasted, prayed, yelled at the trees, journaled about my emotional pain, and contemplated much. Unlike Jesus, I had a comfortable room with a bed to sleep in, and bathroom with a shower. On my last day, as I sat outside on a grassy spot, a rabbit appeared. It gazed at me, twitched its nose, and then hopped away. As I watched him (or her) disappear, I sensed a resemblance of peace within my spirit I had not felt for a very long time. I was ready– to go back out into the world better prepared. Was I the best I could be? No. Time heals wounds, and I would need more time and angel-friends.

The scripture’s subtle ending about angels attending to him, indicates even he needed a support network. I don’t know about you, but my angel-friends have nourished my spirit on many, many occasions.

Jesus had much more to contend with than my mere-mortal-self did. I expect that’s why it took 40 days and nights for him to work through things. When he emerged from the wilderness, he was ready.

My takeaway from this story of Jesus’ time in the wilderness is–

in order to strengthen our spirits, we all need:

I believe we are spiritual beings having a human experience. Our spirits need nourishing in order to resist temptations that come at us during our life’s journey. To nourish ourselves, we have to be deliberate about finding alone time. Do you take time out for yourself?

My prayer for you: I hope the pieces of you that seem barren, does the work to find the peace you need.