THE DESERT AND THE HOME
THE DESERT AND THE HOME
We are often surprised, if not stunned, at the dark and desolate ways through which He leads us, but they are but the boundary line between the place that would detain us from Him, and the region of light and joy in Himself; and if it be terrible and almost overwhelming to nature to cross this line, the very sorrow and suffering endured in crossing it warn us from ever thinking of retracing our steps. The desert land - the land of death, is in our rear; the land of light and life for ever in His presence is before us. If we press on, there is increased cheer and support; if we linger or look back, the darkness petrifies the heart. All depends then on our pressing on and occupying the refuge - the home we have with Christ. If we have fled from a scene of sorrow and death, and have found shelter and security in the home of a beloved friend, are we satisfied to [p. 95] find ourselves just within the door? Surely not; we can indeed draw the breath of relief there, but it is as we get at home there, as we find our liberty and our rest there, that we put on the garments of praise in exchange for the spirit of heaviness; and the deep sorrow and desolation that are behind only cause us to cleave more to the place of deliverance and joy to which we have come. Thus the earthquake - the break up of everything dear to us in this world of death and sorrow, has a double benefit. It prepares us to find refuge and relief in Christ; and then as we are occupied with Him and learn His worth, we are warned and deterred from leaving Him, by remembrance of the very desolation which first made room for Him; and the more we are entirely alone with Him, the more do we discover that He not only can fill every blank, but that there are surpassing resources in Him which the heart fears to lose for an instant. If you stand only at the threshold of the relief, your soul will at best know but alternations; one time the sorrow will beset you, and at another the light and joy of Christ’s presence will cheer you; but if you pass on confidingly into His presence, and abide there, and find your rest there, two things will be more apparent to you every day: one, that you are getting more deeply acquainted with the resources in Christ; and the other, that you are at a greater distance from the world, and the scene where there is nothing for you morally but a grave, and the sorrow which surrounds it.
The Lord lead you on triumphantly as one now walking with Himself, and thus happy here for Himself.