Mark 1:12-13 12 At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert, 13 and he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.
Most of the time, when we talk about being "in the desert", we talk about a time of being alone in a desolate place. A time in our lives where we are lonely or bored - where we are thirsty for more than what we have. We often refer to "desert experiences" as a time when we experience loss. We see the desert as a dry place where we wait for the healing rains that will jettison us back to life.
But the desert that the Spirit sends Jesus into is not just a dry, desolate place. Satan waits for Jesus there - to tempt him! To attack him. There are wild beasts there.
Why would Jesus even go there? Stay away! Go some place good, enjoyable. Go where there is a bigger chance of success. Rather than take the assignment where Satan awaits, take a good one! BUT the Spirit sends Jesus there! The Spirit sends Jesus into a place where he will be attacked.
We don't often think that the Spirit would do such a thing to either Jesus or ourselves. We think that if we make good decisions and live right that only good things will happen to us - that we will get the praise and notoriety we deserve. Deserts are for people who have messed up and need a time out.
But true desert experiences are when the Spirit sends us to where Satan is waiting to attack us. Jesus knows what is ahead of him and goes anyway. But he isn't alone. There are angels to attend to him.
Has the Spirit ever sent you to a place where you will be attacked? Did you accept it as a place where God wanted you to be or did you try to find a way out? Has the Spirit ever sent someone you love into a place where they would be attacked? Did you support them (an angel who attended them)? Or did you encourage them to find a way out believing they'd made a wrong turn? We have a hard time accepting that places of attack are often places we (and our loved ones) are meant to be. We don't see these places as places of success where we learn and grow. We don't see places where we need others (even angels) to help us - places where we don't have the strength to be self-sufficent as places where we've been sent. Maybe we need to rethink this.
Do we ignore Jesus' example of going to the place the Spirit sends us - even if it means we will be attacked?
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