Finding Strength in Desert Seasons
Discover how God uses our desert seasons as divine appointments to shape our character and prepare us for our destiny. Learn from the stories of biblical figures who found God’s purpose amid trials and how we, too, can emerge stronger from our desert experiences.
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8 For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers,[a] of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. 10 He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. 11 You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.
A Divine Appointment in the Desert
In Exodus, God’s people journeyed out of Egypt and into the desert. However, it wasn’t long into their journey before things started being exposed regarding heart matters. Despite God setting them free from the bondage of slavery in Egypt, once they were subjected to the heat and difficulty of the desert, they began to grumble. What’s inside began to show on the outside.
Amid difficulty, people began to ask questions, like “Is the Lord really among us (Exodus 17:7)?” There are also questions of “God, are you with me,” “God, are you real,” and “God, are your promises true?” What we see in the desert story is character weaknesses exposed. These are things that God brings into the light because He wants to develop us.
In our desert experiences, we often squirm and are tempted to justify inappropriate thoughts and actions. Just like the Israelites, we sometimes fashion God in our image to justify ourselves. We’re tempted to believe lies about God, our circumstances, and ourselves to soothe the desperation of our situation.
This is important because everyone who comes to know Christ is a child of God and, therefore, has a destiny.
I want to be clear about using the term “destiny.” Ephesians 2:10 declares, “You are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which He prepared beforehand for us to do.” That means, before you were even born, God prepared things for you to do as a person in Christ.
It’s also important to understand that there is no destiny to fulfill without some deserts to endure. Whether you’re in one right now or have been through one before, there is no destiny to fulfill without enduring a desert. God gave us the Bible not to entertain us but so the patterns and principles included would equip us. There are countless desert experiences in the Bible that God uses to speak into the difficult seasons that we endure. To illustrate this, we see the following examples in Scripture:
Joseph: Grew up in a dysfunctional family, was sold into slavery, faced false accusations, and was imprisoned.
Moses: 40 years in the wilderness before He led God’s people to the Promised Land.
David: On the run from Saul, his own son, who wanted to murder him for his throne.
John the Apostle: Exiled to a desert island (Patmos) for his beliefs.
Jesus: Spent 40 days in the wilderness as The Enemy tested him
There are many more stories we could cite, but the point is that these are included so that we have an understanding of when, not if, we encounter desert seasons in our lives to know that God is up to something.
While deserts may feel like a setback, the reality is that a child of God is set for a breakthrough. Deserts are divine appointments because God doesn’t change your circumstances, instead He changes you. While we may cry out for our circumstances to change, God is refining us, and the desert season will form the foundation for His destiny, which He’s working on within you.
As we talk about God’s work, let’s clarify that this isn’t your work. You can cooperate with God, and I highly encourage that, but what we’re discussing is the plans of the Creator. We see this grounded in Philippians 1:6, which says, “He who began a good work in your will be faithful to bring it to completion.” This is also supported in the next chapter, Philippians 2:13, which says, “It is God who is at work both to will and work His good pleasure.” The desert is a divine appointment that is a tool of God in developing divine purposes.
Let’s revisit the story of the Israelites wandering the desert. At one point, as Moses led God’s people through the desert, He gave them water from a rock (Exodus 17:6). While we may feel lost in the desert, this is a reminder that there are divine resources in the desert: you often won’t discover them until you get thirsty. As the old saying goes, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make them drink.”
We even see this with a deeply spiritual saint who needed deliverance.
Paul was constantly under pressure in his work as an apostle, especially in his relationship with the Church at Corinth. This pressure included the potential collapse of the mission field to which he had devoted his life.
While we don’t know the specifics of Paul’s desert season in this passage, we do know that the Apostle Paul’s desert seasons included imprisonment (Acts 16:23-24), beatings (2 Corinthians 11:24-25), and even a stoning that left him for dead (Acts 14:19). He also faced opposition and false accusations from both Jews and Gentiles (Acts 13:50; 2 Corinthians 11:26), as well as life-threatening dangers such as shipwrecks (Acts 27:41-44), and plots against his life (Acts 23:12-15).
In light of the Apostle Paul’s desert season(s), what is the deliverance of Jesus, and how can we apply it to our desert seasons?
What is the Deliverance of Jesus
1) It’s Not a Human Deliverance
I want to be forthright and acknowledge that I’m an advocate for counseling. Scripture tells us there’s wisdom in the abundance of counsel, and I fully support good, Christ-centered counseling. However, as we delve into this topic, we’re not discussing counseling. This isn’t human deliverance we’re looking at, but a Biblical, Jesus deliverance.
“But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.” 2 Corinthians 1:9c
While this verse tells us many things, the one important thing I want to highlight is that when Paul refers to Jesus’s resurrection, the deliverance he’s referencing is a powerful one. It’s the same power that resurrected a dead man, the resurrection power of Jesus. Many of Paul’s hearers had Jewish backgrounds and would’ve heard similar things like this before, only worded differently (Zechariah).
“Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.” Zachariah 4:6
Paul’s hearers knew that passage by heart but needed a reminder of God’s power. They needed to be reminded that it is a deliverance that Jesus demonstrated in His ministry and through His instructions of how we should pray. When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we’re taught to pray, “Lord, deliver us from the evil one.” The theologian Jonathan Edwards said, “We ought not limit God where God has not limited Himself.”
We recognize that was a regular occurrence in the Apostle Paul’s life in ministry. He’d pray for the deliverance that Jesus brings amid difficult circumstances. While jailed in Phillipi, he wrote, “…for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, this will turn out for my deliverance (Philippians 1:19).”
He wasn’t talking about a human deliverance, but a Jesus deliverance.
2) It’s a Truth-Filled Deliverance
“For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death.” 2 Corinthians 1:8-9 (emphasis added)
Look at the phraseology the Apostle Paul uses because it’s very clear and truthful. If you received a call from a friend or loved one who shared that sentiment with you, they’re obviously not in a good place. In fact, they’re in a very bad place mentally, emotionally, physically and/or spiritually.
For the Apostle Paul to say they despaired life itself and have the sentence of death hanging over them, that use of language is a classic definition of clinical depression. This is important to note because the Apostle Paul was, and this is my personal opinion, aside from Jesus, the greatest spiritual giant the world has ever known. Yet, he’s not too prideful to acknowledge that he needed help. He doesn’t sugarcoat it either and is forthright in the description of his desert.
With the deliverance of Jesus, we want to be truth-filled people. We want to be honest if we’re having a problem with:
Alcohol
Overeating
Pornography
Slander
Shopping
Hoarding
Substance or drug abuse
Online gambling
Jealously/Envy
[Fill in the blank]
We want to have a truth-filled deliverance when we approach admitting our struggles amid desert seasons.
3) It’s Not a Private Deliverance
“For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia.” 2 Corinthians 1:8
The Apostle Paul is openly sharing and exemplifying healthy transparency within the confines of other trusted believers. Let’s also validate that Paul isn’t oversharing because he’s not sharing with persons who aren’t part of his trusted community.
This is a blanket statement that I will substantiate, but we’re not designed for isolation. Throughout the Bible, we see things like “love one another,” “forgive one another,” “encourage one another,” “spur one another on to good works,” and so on. In our Western mindset, these can sound contrary, but according to God’s design, we weren’t created for isolation.
We’re designed for a deep and abiding community with one another. Rather than being put off by that notion, I submit that this is radiantly attractive. This was part of the genius of the Wesleyan movement. When John Wesley developed the early Methodist movement, he ensured that people were connected with one another in deep community through classes, bands, and societies. Each week, Methodists would meet together in groups of three to five people of the same gender (known as bands) and ask each person the following four questions:
What known sins have you committed since our last meeting?
What temptations have you met with?
How were you delivered?
What have you thought, said, or done of which you doubt whether it is a sin or not?
These aren’t “gotcha” questions because they’re never asked to shame people. Instead, they were asked to help people find freedom in Christ. The point of the practice was a deep, loving, and Christ-centered community that allowed people to be honest and transparent with other believers. Wesley noticed that, historically, people were freed and developed when they were in the community. It’s what Wesley meant when he said, “There is no holiness except social holiness.” Community enables Christ-centered life transformation. (READ MORE: What is Social Holiness)
“Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.” James 5:16a-b
Notice the phrase James used, “You may be healed.” He’s explaining that we have the opportunity to have radiant human flourishing for the glory of God. The deliverance of Jesus isn’t private but is found in community.
4) It’s a Prayer-Filled Deliverance
“You also must help us by prayer…” 2 Corinthians 1:11a
Note how Paul connects prayer and the practical side of help. We see an illustration of this from Paul’s own life in Acts 16. Along with Silas, Paul has been jailed. They’re beaten, stripped, bloodied, and thrown into a deep, dark dungeon of a cell. It’s possible their ribs were broken, they had concussions and possibly infected wounds. Can you imagine yourself in that situation? What would you do? Lay there and moan? That’s not what Paul did. They sang hymns!
“About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great earthquake so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately, all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened.” Acts 16:25-26
When you’ve seen God move like that, it does something to you. Based on what you’ve seen God do in the past, you begin to understand the capacity of God’s creativity to do that which could bring about a preferred future for your desert. That’s a part of reaching for living water. As we thirst for living water in the desert, God’s presence and assurance will encourage us to persevere. But we often won’t discover that until we get thirsty.
5) It’s a Worshipful Deliverance
“You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.” 2 Corinthians 1:11 (emphasis added)
Another way of saying “so that many will give thanks” is to say “many would exalt God.” This emphasizes that many would treasure Jesus for the beauty and glory that He is. Paul’s main objective was to glorify Christ.
“He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and He will deliver us. On Him, we have set our hope that He will deliver us again.” 2 Corinthians 1:10
We should exalt God for what He’s done in the past because it strengthens our confidence in Him in the present and the future.
When Jesus ascended into Heaven (Acts 1:9-12), He went to the Father’s right hand. That has everything to do with you and me because the Bible says He’s interceding for us. That means He’s not only praying for you, but the word “intercede” means to close the gap between Heaven and Earth; He’s your advocate.
The Enemy is known as the Accuser, so if the Accuser is coming at you like a prosecuting attorney, then Jesus is your defense attorney. He stands in the throne room of Heaven on your behalf. He participates in the ongoing ministry of praying and interceding for your empowerment to come. He wants us to partake in Him as the bread of life and our living water so that we can grow in the desert seasons of our lives.
God began a good work in you, and we can trust His promise that He will bring it to completion. Even amid our desert seasons, God delights in demonstrating His glory through us and His deliverances.
TL;DR
In the desert seasons of life, where challenges and character flaws come to light, God is not merely changing our circumstances but transforming us.
These periods are not setbacks but setups for spiritual growth and fulfillment of our divine destiny.
By examining the lives of Joseph, Moses, David, and others, we see that deserts are crucial for spiritual development, reminding us that God’s work in us is profound and purposeful.
Related Reading
Debtors of Grace by Rev. Paul Lawler
What Are The Blessings of Fearing God by Rev. Paul Lawler
How to Develop Intimacy with God by Rev. Paul Lawler
