#439 Desert

Welcome to Kingdom Writers, where we help equip and empower Christian writers of all genres to share your unique gifts with the world. We're your hosts, C.J. and Shelli Hitz.

This podcast is filled with spiritual encouragement as well as prayers to help you overcome the resistance you face as a writer. Your story matters.

Welcome to the Kingdom Writers Podcast. My name is Shelly Hitz, one of your hosts. This episode is an excerpt from our virtual writing retreat we host every month inside our membership Christian Book Academy. You can join us with a special coupon code just for podcast listeners, and this will get you 50% off your first month. Use the coupon code podcast podcast, and this way we can help you take a step of faith and finally finish your book. So go to ChristianBookAcademy.com and enter the Coupon Code Podcast at checkout for 50% off your first month. Come join us at our retreats and all the other things that we offer throughout the month, and I pray that the encouragement from this episode blesses you. Today, CJ's going to share on the topic of desert and what that might mean for us as Kingdom writers. So, cj, why don't you share with us today?

Yeah.

So, you know, at some point in each of our lives, we're going to find ourselves in a desert. And many of us have lived long enough to where, you know, we've had several deserts, you know, that we. We've lived in or at least wandered around in. So we're talking about a place of heat and barrenness. And, you know, when we. When I'm talking about the desert today, think of the Mojave or the Sahara in July, not Palm Springs by, by the poolside, you know, so there's a difference in terms of deserts and the surroundings. But when. When we're talking desert here this morning, we're talking about an oppressive place of barrenness, of heat, of just.

No reprieve. And that's a hard place to be in. And many of you could name specific deserts that you've been in in your lifetime. You can describe it in detail.

And so I wanted to mention that the word desert in Hebrew is the word midbar. And that word midbar comes from the root word debar, which actually means. And I find this interesting to speak. To speak. And so isn't it so true if you've lived long enough, you realize that the Lord speaks to us in those desert places. He speaks to us in a way that.

Other places just can't. It's where everything that we rely upon for comfort is stripped from us things that we thought we needed but realized we didn't.

Things that may have kept us from hearing God speak. I want you to think about those things in your life. Things that have been distractions, perhaps. I think of just our social media today and how it's so easy just to listen to all kinds of other voices except the Lord's. The Lord just kind of gets pushed away. But sometimes we're driven to the desert where we have no choice but to hear the one voice that wants to speak to us. I want to say that deserts aren't comfortable, but deserts can be very educational.

Not all of our deserts are going to be the same. For some, it's going to look like caring for a loved one for a long time.

For. For others, it's going to be dealing with an extended illness.

Perhaps financial challenge that just continues to linger. Maybe a season of no writing productivity. Has anyone been in a season like that where it just seems like nothing is coming forth?

There's just sort of a barrenness in that way. Maybe it's a season of depression. I know I've had times in my life where I've dealt with some bouts of depression and it's a hard place to be and, you know, it's. Yet in those times I found that clinging to the Lord was, was my only hope.

Maybe it's a divorce that, that you, you didn't ask for, but it happened and, and you find yourself living in that desert. Maybe it's a death of a spouse, a season of one rejection after another where you can't seem to win for losing. I like using that phrase, win for losing. You know, it's. No matter what you do, it just doesn't seem to work. And you've tried everything. You've banged your head against the door and you just wonder, what in the world am I doing wrong?

Maybe it's moving to an area where you don't know anyone and you're just in this season where.

It'S you and the Lord and yet it's a sweet place in that you are clinging to the Lord. So I want to actually read a couple verses From Deuteronomy chapter 32 where.

We. We hear the word desert and.

It'S referring to God's people, Israel, and where he found them. And so I'm going to just read three verses in Deuteronomy 32, chapter verse 10. It says he found them in a desert land.

In an empty, howling wasteland. Think about the description there. An empty, howling wasteland.

He surrounded them and watched over them.

He guarded them as he would guard his own eyes. Some translations say the actual pupil of his eye. And like an eagle that rouses her chicks and hovers over her young, so he spread his wings to take them up and carried them safely on his pinions. Verse 12. The Lord alone guided them. They followed no foreign gods.

So I want to ask us, where is God? When we find ourselves in a desert.

Initially we feel alone, forgotten and just, utterly vulnerable. And so what if we placed our own names there in verse 10? He found Heather.

In that howling wasteland. He found Sheila in that howling wasteland. Surely he found CJ in that howling wasteland.

And so I want you just to think of yourself in the times that you've been found in the desert by the Lord. I want to suggest that there are four things.

That God does.

When we're in the desert. When he places us in the desert. Number one. He surrounds us. He surrounds us. He's right there, all around you. He's protecting you. He's in your midst. He hasn't left. He's in your midst. Number two, he watches over us. He watches over us and.

He'S looking around. He's scanning the horizon. You just think of someone who is like a shepherd. A shepherd looking over.

At all of his sheep. Number three. He guards us like the pupil of his eye. How many of you know that we'll guard that pupil of our eye.

Intensely. Will keep anything from getting in there. This the, the littlest speck of sand or dust we keep from getting into that pupil of our eye. You just think about when you and I are in the desert. We are God's very pupil. He is guarding you. He is watching over you. He surrounds you. He's looking for anything that might.

Get into that pupil of his eye. We literally become like the pupil of his eye in the desert. And then finally, the fourth thing that we read in this little section is he guides us. He alone guides us.

And so there's no tour guide except the Lord when it comes to the desert. Want you to remember Jesus when he was driven to the desert. It says he was driven to the desert by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit led him into the desert for those 40 days and he was taken care of. He was provided for not with physical food, but with the presence of the Lord seeking his father. And of course, he was tempted in every way. And yet he overcame those temptations. Think of Moses. Moses was a man acquainted with the desert.

And if you've read about Moses recently, and the things that he went through. Isn't it interesting to think about the fact that the Lord led him into a desert for 40 years, and then right after that, turned around and led him into another desert for another 40 years, except this time with millions of people.

Millions of his best friends, so to speak. And so it's interesting that God was preparing Moses in those first 40 years of driving him to the desert before he would prepare him to be the leader of a people who wandered around in a desert for 40 years.

And so I want to quickly look over at deuteronomy. Deuteronomy, chapter 8, verses 2 through 5.

Deuteronomy 8, 2, 5. Listen to this. This is again the Lord showing what he's done for his people. Remember how the Lord, your God led you through the wilderness, the desert, for these 40 years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands? Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone. Remember, Jesus quoted that verse, rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. For all these 40 years, your clothes didn't wear out and your feet didn't blister or swell. Think about it. Just as a parent disciplines a child, the Lord your God disciplines you for your own good.

And I want to say that in this passage, we learn what we're truly made of in the desert. You're going to find out what the real substance is in your character, in your heart, what's really coming up to the surface, bubbling up when you're in the desert. And I want to say that the Lord doesn't place us in the desert to ruin us.

He does it to refine us. He doesn't do it to ruin you. He does it to refine you. And me. Moses went from being advanced. I want you just to think about where Moses was before his first desert.

Moses was in the courts of Pharaoh.

Moses went from being advanced in hieroglyphics and Egyptian sciences, one of Pharaoh's elect.

To tending sheep in an obscure part of the desert, just like that. Not only that, he's living now with his father in law. His father in law has given him one of his daughters in marriage.

He was blessed with, we later read, with two sons. But he's living with this family in the Midian desert, a dry, arid place. Anybody that's ever been There knows how utterly barren it is. Truly a howling wasteland.

This is where Moses is finding himself. Now you want to talk about a course in Humility 101.

Moses.

Was in that course.

And finally, each of our deserts are going to look a little different. In each of our lives, all of our deserts are going to look different. But we serve each of those deserts serves the same purpose of humbling and refining us to be even more effective as kingdom raiders.

You know, I found this at times in my own life where I've leaned on other things. It could be something as simple as my running performance. It can be something as simple as going through a period where you know, you're just constantly injured or.

It seems like relationships, you know, may, may not work out like you thought they would.

There are just these reminders in life that sometimes we go through these desert places and the only thing we have to lean on is the Lord. But I believe that God puts us in our deserts for that very purpose so that we cling to him and him alone. We have no other crutch. When you're out in the desert, you think of being in a literal desert. It's a very vulnerable place of heat, barrenness, not much growth in the desert, right, right at that time. But I want to submit that there is growth happening because of what the Lord is doing in.

And through you. There's a pruning, there is a humbling. And when that happens, we are being prepared for something incredible that the Lord's guiding and directing. I want you to think of what happened after Jesus left His 40 day desert. Right after that. He chose His 12 disciples right after that. It launched them into this three year ministry where he is touring.

The land of Israel and sharing the gospel and healing the sick and touching people in ways that they'd never been touched before. And so I want you to think about any desert that you might have gone through, are going through, or will go through. Think of it in a different light.

Can be a desert that you learn. You and I are taught lessons that last for a lifetime and spur on a fruitfulness out of that that we've never enjoyed before. And so that's my challenge to all of us, is that deserts do have a positive. Although they are uncomfortable and they're no fun to go through in the moment.

The desert is a place that God will use in our lives.

In order for us to be the tools in his hands that he wants us to become. They are a place of molding and shaping. And so consider that wherever you Find yourself today. All of us will agree that we will go through a desert. And sometimes some of those are extended, some of those are short. But we're all human beings and we're all kingdom writers here, which means the Lord is doing something in us that he can't do in someone else. He's molding and shaping us according to his own son. That's being shaped within us. So that's my encouragement challenge to all of us today regarding deserts.

Yeah, that's really good. And I know that we've all experienced them. If you are living in this earth, we're not in heaven yet. So we have those hills and valleys, we have the ups and the downs. And I just think that, you know, CJ's right, it's such a humbling experience. But we learn so much as long as we don't resist it. Sometimes I'm like, lord, what do you want me to learn through this? Because I want to learn it and then move on.

Right? I don't want to have to keep coming back to learn it. And over the last few years, some of you know, we've. My sister became a caregiver for my dad and my sister and I are both power of attorneys. So there's been a lot of things that CJ and I have done as well. And we've had my dad come and live with us for, for six weeks at a time just to give my sister a break. And it's just been a lot and without going into all of it, there were just, there's some reasons that my dad doesn't have the finances to pay for assisted living. There's just things going on and God used this time to humble me. But also I'm gonna get teary eyed to help me to heal more and to forgive my dad for some things that happened that put us in this situation. And we were paying the price for some of his sin and we were having to pay the consequences. And you know.

God knows what we need. And.

We didn't, we didn't know, we thought it could be for the rest of his life that we would be doing this. And my dad is still fairly healthy. He's young, he's in his 70s. And recently he was hospitalized and in rehab and he's doing well now, but because he got in the system, he was finally approved for Medicaid and he was just moved into, didn't realize it's going to get emotional. He was just moved into assisted living yesterday. And I feel like the Lord is kind of taking us out of this desert season of caring for him in that way. And yet God did teach us so much. It was three and a half years, and it's not a long time. Some of you have been caregivers for 20 years, but it's a lot, and especially with the circumstances and. And the reasons behind all of it. So, you know, God is good. He teaches us. And CJ said multiple times over the last three and a half years, he's like, Shelly, I think if nothing else, the Lord is allowing this to happen to humble us.

To teach us and. But also just to know, like, God can answer prayers and sometimes, like, we've been praying for God to provide for this for three and a half years, and, you know, he opened a door that we could not open, we could not figure out. So, anyways, yeah, it's.

It.

God is good, and he's always working and always healing and always. You know, sometimes we resist it and we don't want it. But my suggestion is, you know what? Ask the Lord, what do I need to learn in this season? How can I grow in this season? Because then we may be able to move on to the next one a little sooner, maybe not. But you know what? He's. He's good no matter what we're walking through and going through. So, cj, why don't you pray for all of us?

Yeah, Father, I would just thank you so much for each person here, Lord. Each person has gone through some kind of a desert at some point, maybe is currently or will. And we just thank you, Lord, that you. You do surround us, you do watch over us, you do.

Guard us and you guide us. And I just thank you, Lord, that.

We'Re not alone. I want to pray, Lord, that each person would.

Be able to hear what you're calling them to do next, whatever that might be.

I pray, Lord, that you'd give each person inspiration, creativity, just the ability to tap into the best that you have for them. And whatever each person is working on today, I pray, Lord, that they'd be able to make progress and move forward with that, calling on their lives into tomorrow. Lord, we just pray that we would be able to give you the glory for the things that you're leading us to do and accomplish. And we just thank you for each person here. Touch them in a powerful way that only you can, Lord. And we thank you for this time together. We just lift this time up. In Jesus name. Amen.

Amen. Would you like more? If you are enjoying this podcast, but want more, I have something exciting to Share with you we have released what what's called a private podcast. So a private podcast you will not find by searching an apple. You have to know specifically how to subscribe to it. It's more private and exclusive and it just can be more relaxed behind the scenes. And my new private podcast is called Hits Blitz and it's wisdom for writers that you're going to learn from my 18 plus years of experience in publishing and online marketing so that you can move forward in God's Call to write. I am best known for injecting energy and enthusiasm into everything I do and inspiring those around me to take action. So I encourage you to listen in to this exclusive private podcast. It is free, 100% free. You don't have to pay for it and be prepared to be inspired by my next Hits Bullets. So you can sign up@trainingauthors.com hit hits blitz and if you have any other writing friends that you think could benefit from it, definitely share it with them. They can go to the Same link training authors.com forward/hits blitz to get access. Again, this is a private podcast so you cannot get access to it any other way. It's completely free. All you have to do is sign up and then you'll get all the information on how to add it to your podcast player of choice. So I can't wait for you to join me over there. I share a lot of things behind the scenes and more content just in a real time basis. So it's more like chatting with a friend or following someone on stories on social media. Except you don't have to get caught up in any of the algorithms. You'll just have this in your podcast player and be able to listen in wherever you're at, whatever you're doing. Some of the listeners told me this week that they were listening while waiting in the Target parking lot while brushing their teeth. You can fit this into the pockets of time that you have. So I hope you'll join me. Come over to trainingauthors.com hitsblitz if you're ready to take a step of faith and finally finish your book, we have a few ways we can help you. First of all, you can join our Free Writing Week challenge to create a writing habit in just 15 minutes a day. Thousands of writers have taken this over the years and it is incredible that the progress that you'll see. So join us@writingweek.com and again, this is completely free. Inside our Book Writing Lab workshop. You can choose your book topic, write an outline and create a writing plan in just 90 minutes so you'll finally feel confident that you'll actually finish your book. Get started@bookwritinglab.com and finally you can get more support and personalized feedback from myself and our team by joining Christian Book Academy because the honest truth is most writers stay stuck and never finish their first draft. But inside Christian Book Academy we help you partner with God to write your book so you can become a published author. So finally ditch your self doubt and take a step of faith so you can finish your book. Join Christian book academy@christianbookacademy.com and get 50% off your first month by using the Coupon Code Partnership podcast at checkout. There's a special coupon code for our podcast listeners. We love you, so come on over to ChristianBookAcademy.com use the coupon code Podcast and we look forward to working closely with you.

Thank you for listening to this episode of Kingdom Writers. We believe that you, as a Christian writer have a specific role to play in the Kingdom of Heaven to impact lives for eternity.

And because of this, we choose to pour out our lives into encouraging writers like you to not only tell your stories, but to take the courageous step of self publishing your stories in books that will outlive you and leave behind a powerful legacy. This book podcast is sponsored by Christian Book Academy where we help you give birth to your books. We invite you to join our community of Kingdom writers.