Many pastors and spiritual leaders teach about Moses. Even if you are a pure atheist, in the western culture, it’s a good chance you have heard about God’s exploits through him. Most people know about the Red Sea parting, the Egyptian plagues, and the Ten Commandments. Most people miss the time the Children of Israel spent in the desert. They wandered forty years, in the desert! The desert is an inhospitable environment, especially without the modern conveniences we enjoy today. But, there in lies the beautiful blessing of that desert experience.

The Bible says that God himself guided them by a pillar of fire by night and a pillar of cloud by day. It’s amazing to me that God made sure they didn’t get lost because He led them Himself. Moses was the man in charge, but he too was just a follower. It’s an amazing thought that in the heat of the desert sun, God himself kept them cool with a cloud. In the cool of the of the desert nights, God Himself kept them warm with fire. On the surface these miraculous signs aren’t as flashy as turning water into blood, but to the lost, sunburned, and hypothermic it is love on display.

Whether we like to admit it or not, we hate dry and barren places. Instead of literal deserts, we go through metaphorical ones all the time. Our relationships, our finances, and our dreams go through times of great difficulty. Hard times never feel good, and we can find ourselves complaining and wishing for better days. That is the same response as that of the children of Israel. It frustrated both Moses and God. But, in those hard times its important to look for God’s blessing. Most often, He is just ahead of us guiding the way to the more fruitful promised land. Hard times always come, but God is always their leading and making the way a little more bearable.