“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert.”

Luke 4:1
Ponder this amazing Bible verse. Jesus had just been showered with the anointing love and affirmation of His Father at His baptism in the refreshing waters of the Jordan River. God was preparing Him for what was ahead. Now Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit and was pointed straight to the hot, rugged wilderness.
I recall a time in my life when I experienced God’s fatherly love in a profound way so that I was prepared for His purposes which one day would include prison ministry. Notice in today’s verse that the Spirit led Jesus from the river to the desert; this was part of the Father’s purpose for the Son. Desert times are his leading, too. The years of imprisonment, addiction, struggle, sorrow, loneliness, and regret are somehow all in God’s ordained plan for you.
Does it feel like God is leading you the wrong way? Does your life feel like a wasteland? Take heart and know that your Savior went through the desert for you and promises you a fully redeemed life with Him one day back at a river… this one, the River of Life!



Scripture Focus

Revelation 22:1-7

Insight

“‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord.” (Isaiah 55:8)

Bible In A Year

  • Numbers 17-18
  • Psalm 70
  • John 11

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