Can I Flourish in the Desert? Part 2

Scripture – Isaiah 35:1-2 (NRSV)

The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad,
+++the desert shall rejoice and blossom;
+++like the crocus
it shall blossom abundantly,
+++and rejoice with joy and singing.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
+++the majesty of Carmel and Sharon.
They shall see the glory of the LORD,
+++the majesty of our God.

Devotion

Today’s devotion continues the conversation from yesterday. I want to reflect with you a bit more in response to the question: Can I flourish in the desert? As I noted yesterday, the idea of flourishing sounds great. After all, who wouldn’t want to live fully and fruitfully? But many people are not in a place where flourishing seems likely, or even possible. They feel as if they’re in a desert of dryness and despair. Their dreams for life didn’t pan out as they had expected. For folks like these, talk of flourishing can seem empty or even unkind.

In yesterday’s devotion, we saw that God is in the business of making deserts flourish. In Isaiah 35:2, “the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the crocus
it shall blossom abundantly.” Isaiah goes on to say that “the glory of Lebanon shall be given to it” (35:2). Lebanon, in the time of Isaiah, was known for its verdant forests and vigorous cedar trees. This blessing will, in time, be given to the desert. God’s people, caught in a season of debilitating dryness, will one day be fully and generously restored.

The God who brings ultimate flourishing can also help us to thrive in the desert. By God’s grace, our lives can be an oasis of beauty and fruitfulness. We can indeed flourish, though not as we have done before and not as we may have hoped. Flourishing will look different in different seasons of life.

I want to share briefly three examples of flourishing in the desert. All three stories feature friends of mine who are (or were) living fully and fruitfully in what feels (or felt) to them very much like a desert.

Tim was a world-class gymnast who may well have made it to the Olympics. But, while training in college, he sustained a major neck injury that immediately ended his athletic career and saddled him with years of terrible pain. Tim’s dreams of athletic flourishing were over. He was stuck in what felt like an endless desert.

But God had plans for his life. Tim went on after college to pursue a top-flight education. He invested his talents in creative, innovative ministries. Now, he leads one of the top Christian organizations in the world, while also being a loving, engaged husband and father. Once thrust into the desert, Tim is flourishing today by God’s grace.

Martha loved being a wife and mother more than anything in life. She was deeply devoted to her husband, with whom she served in children’s ministry at her church. When her husband was diagnosed with terminal cancer, Martha’s life seemed to unravel. His death was devasting for her emotionally. It also destroyed her vision of how she would flourish in life.

One of my favorite photos of my mom. She was camping with a bunch of families from her church. Photo copyright of Mark Roberts.

In the midst of her grief, Martha began to serve in a temporary children’s ministry staff role at her church. Soon that ministry was thriving under her leadership, and the church asked Martha to become the full-time director. For seventeen years she flourished, as did the ministry entrusted to her and the hundreds of children and families whose lives she touched. She loved her job and the people with whom she worked. And they loved her. Martha’s desert became filled with blossoms, though she never stopped aching over the fact that she couldn’t share it with her beloved husband. (Martha, by the way, was my mother. The photo is of my mom, who, at around 70 years of age, was camping in Yosemite, sleeping on the ground in a tent, leading a bunch of families from the church and having the time of her life.)

Johnnie was an older woman in my church in Irvine. She was energetic, outspoken, and filled with love. She had also suffered more than most people I knew; she struggled with various physical ailments, but, more than that, she had lost a son and all of her grandchildren to premature death. Johnnie could tear up in a second when she talked about those she had lost, but, by God’s grace, that same passion made Johnnie one of the warmest people in our church. She especially loved welcoming visitors, getting to know them, inviting them lunch, and caring for them in a beautiful way.

But, near the end of her life, Johnnie’s physical condition deteriorated. She became bedridden and couldn’t come to church anymore. She felt useless and depressed. One day, as I was visiting her, she lamented her empty life. We began to talk and pray about what she might be able to do with such physical limitations. All of a sudden, Johnnie got an inspiration. Though stuck in bed, she could still use the phone. She determined to get the church directory and call every household in the church to see how she might be able to pray for them. And so she did, day after day. Church members experienced Johnnie’s genuine care with gratitude. And she was able to live fruitfully even when stuck in her room.

All of these friends of mine flourished in their desert. All lived fully and fruitfully in spite of difficult losses and challenges—though it might be better to say that all of these friends flourished both in spite of and because of what they suffered. Their pain gave them deeper wisdom, deeper love, and even deeper gratitude.

You may not be in the desert today, and that’s great. Or you may be in the middle of what feels like an endless Sahara. You may not be able to flourish today as you had once hoped. But God is with you, and God is able to make deserts flourish.

Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the High Calling archive, hosted by the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: The Promise of Return

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