Rivers in the Desert

UV 1623/10000 Rivers in the Desert
Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.

Isaiah 43 v 19

The Lord promises to accomplish new things in our lives. He is the God of surprises. He is able to do things that we are not expecting and do far beyond our human understanding or imagination or desire. We may not be able to fully comprehend His ways. He caused water to gush forth from rocks at His word. When Moses struck the rock in the wilderness water came forth. He can make a way for us where no road or path exists. He can cause rivers to arise in the desert. Nothing is difficult or impossible for Him. The God of peace can make our lives overflow with joy and hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is the spiritual version of the cascade or flywheel effect. A small change in our attitude and heart can create a great change in our lives.

The word “ behold” with which the uni-verse begins implies that we should open our inner eye of faith to perceive the greatness of the Lord. His greatness is beyond our understanding and our senses of perception. When recently the Lord said, “ I will change the city of Chennai into a virtual sea”, we did not know what exactly He meant in the word of prophecy. But it rained continually like in the time of Noah for nearly three weeks, filling all the surrounding lakes. As a result the whole city became a collection of islands with water overrunning highways and road. The nearly dry rivers were in full spate. The canals overflowed their banks. The amount of precipitation exceeded the forecasts and confounded the experts and authorities.

“ A way in the wilderness” is a metaphor for a solution for a difficult issue or problem that is plaguing us. The “ river in the desert” could be interpreted as a perennial source of blessings for our lives. The Word is a river in our otherwise spiritually dry, powerless or hopeless lives. The Word becomes a source of blessings for our lives when it is sown along with tears of faith and prayer over a period of time in our lives. The Lord can make the mountains or difficulties into plains or sources of growth, fruitfulness and blessing. He can make the rough places smooth and make the crooked ways straight. He does these new things to edify or build up our precious faith. Nothing becomes stale or dry or spoilt in the kingdom of God. He is the God of renewal. He renews and revives us with His promises. He disciplines, prunes and corrects us with afflictions, admonitions and commandments so that we bear a different fruit every month of the year. We become more productive, creative and constructive in our approach to life and in everything we endeavour in our lives.

Prateep V Philip