When we find ourselves in the wilderness, we often wonder how we got there. Did we do something wrong? Are we being punished? Is it our fault, or is there someone else we can blame? We want to know why we’re there because knowing may help us find a way out.
Take comfort realizing that Jesus Himself spent time in the wilderness. It was not because He’d done something wrong or was being punished. The Bible tells us that God Himself led Jesus there (specifically God the Spirit led Him). The fact that God led Jesus into the wilderness reassures us that He is the One who leads us, too. It is not beyond God’s reach to use our wilderness times and desert wanderings for our good.
Jesus was hungry in His wilderness. I am hungry in mine, too. This shared hunger is an opportunity for fellowship with my Savior. But there’s one difference. God didn’t feed Jesus in His wilderness. Jesus endured it, remaining hungry to the end. Daily in my wilderness I’m fed. How? Not by manna, but by the true bread from heaven, Jesus Himself.