The Desert at Night
So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. ––Isaiah 41:10
I’m blessed to live in a Mediterranean climate, where the summers aren’t too hot, the winters aren’t too cold, and humidity is usually low. In fact, less than 1% of the world enjoys a Mediterranean climate, and it offers rare opportunities for outdoorsy folks like me.
Much of the Holy Land lies in a Mediterranean climate very similar to Southern California’s: mild-temperature beaches year round, deserts that can get surprisingly cold in the winter, and skiing on Israel’s highest peak, Mt. Hermon. And our deserts look and feel a lot like those in Israel.
So it’s not hard for me to imagine Jesus heading alone into the Judean desert—the feel of the sandy soil, the warm wind during the day and the chill at night. When we hear this story as told in three of the four Gospels, we often think “hot, dry, windy.” That’s the desert, right? It is, but Jesus entered the desert in the Hebrew month of Tishri (late September). Those forty days were all probably either hot or warm, but the nights started to chill off—especially as He counted down the later days of the forty.
Have you been to the desert at night? It can be surprisingly chilly—and temperatures can drop forty or even fifty degrees. Can you imagine the night sky, the clarity of the stars? No fires from villages, no cities within miles. Just Jesus alone, sitting near fire, keeping the wild animals at bay—including lions and other large cats. It’s actually an encouraging image, if you think about it:
Even when Jesus Himself was alone, His Father was with Him.
Even when you are alone—in whatever “desert” season or circumstance you may be facing—you are not really alone. The fire that protects you in the wilderness is His Holy Spirit—you carry His divine spark within you. Satan—the roaring lion—stalks in the darkness, but our Father tells us that no weapon formed against us will prosper (Isaiah 54:17).
Don’t fear life’s deserts, brother, even on the darkest nights. Call out to Him, and He will come to you. Jesus was never alone, and neither are you.
Father, thank you that I carry the light of the Holy Spirit within me, and You protect me from the devouring lions of this world.