So here I am! The Promised Land! Back to work, cancer-free, weak but gaining strength. I have arrived! It’s really strange, but now I’m here, I’m experiencing a bit of trepidation.
When we are in the desert of life, it brings a sharpness to everything. A greater grasp of what is important, a more cutting edge tint to the enjoyment of the day, a deep joy of blessings, the sharp sting of any unsorted regrets and an intense and grateful reliance on the God who sustains us. In the Bible, the Israelites experienced this. God performed miracles everyday in feeding, shading, leading and sustaining his people through the desert. And he promised them that it wouldn’t be forever. That one day, he would lead them to the promised land. And he did.
But they couldn’t handle it. The new land had everything they needed. Ready-made cities, agriculture and water, riches and political power. It had everything they needed, and so they learned to rely on it rather than God. The comfort of the promised land numbed them.
I notice this with me everyday. Normal is returning. I no longer wake up distinctly aware of the sheer gift of the breath in my lungs. I no longer have to constantly position my heart with God for strength and peace to sustain through physical pain or exhaustion. I’m in the promised land – the beautiful oasis after the desert.
And it scares me.
I don’t want the blessing of the promised land to rob me of the lessons of the desert.
The desert was hard. And delightful. And painful. And grace-filled. I learned so much about God and myself. I was blessed and taught and shaped in the desert of cancer.
I have always wondered how God intended for his people to live in the promised land. What would it have looked like if they managed to live in it and still rely on him?
I intend to find out.
The Joy of the Mundane 