Desert Son
‘I will call them out into the desert
And speak tenderly to them there.’
So he goes, out into the dry place,
Away from the distractions,
To focus, to listen, to draw close.
‘I will call them out into the desert
And speak tenderly to them there.’
And so he goes… to shape his mission,
Not chasing fame or fortune,
Celebrity or point-scoring,
Facing down the pitfalls and people-traps.
‘I will call them out into the desert
And speak tenderly to them there.’
And so he goes, though it’s not easy,
A different champion, a humble hero,
Searching for the lost and the unloved,
For the disregarded and also-rans.
‘I will call them out into the desert
And speak tenderly to them there.’
This dusty saviour, this calloused carer,
This man from Nazareth,
This desert king of hearts.
Biblical Desert Moments
At a moment when
He is there in the limelight,
Everyone watching,
He steps away from the crowd,
Chooses time with his Father.
The desert beckons,
A place he’ll visit often,
To hear the tender
Voice of his Father and to
Refocus on what matters.
Hosea 2 v 14, Matthew 3 v 13 – 4 v 1
Biblical Desert Moments
Did the desert smile?
Rejoice when the living word
Moved in for a while.
Preparing himself to be
With us in all our deserts.
Giving us strength for
Our weaknesses and fears,
Saying, ‘Do not fear,
For your God is on your side,
Full of hope and compassion.’
Isaiah 35 v 1-4, Matthew 4 v 1
Biblical Desert Moments
The tempter offers
A pitiful meal of stones –
A pretence of bread,
Has no notion of the feast
Jesus shares with his father.
Later, because of
His time here in emptiness,
He will bring full life,
Living bread for the people,
Bread and wine for everyone.
Matthew 4 v 3-4, John 6 v 51
Biblical Desert Moments
Worshipping with his
Being and space and time, in
The ordinary
Moments, in each footstep and
Breath taken, sound and silence.
Offering himself
And the things he sees and does,
Not spectacular
Or grand or impressive, but
Each moment as it occurs.
Matthew 4 v 10, Psalm 103 v 1
Biblical Desert Moments
He would have known of
Hagar and her trust: ‘El Roi –
The God who sees me.’
The God who sees now looks on
All the kingdoms of this world…
‘All yours…’ the tempter
Tells him, not realising
That he already
Knows this but needs not grasp it
To posture or prove himself.
Genesis 16 v 13, Matthew 4 v 8-9
Biblical Desert Moments
Did the desert seem
Like the valley of dry bones
At times? Did he see
Lives waiting to be reborn,
So many waiting for life?
Or Noah’s fractured
World, waiting to be flooded,
Not with rainwater,
But with the refreshing drench
Of a resurrection restart.
Ezekiel 37, Genesis 8
Biblical Desert Moments
This once and future
King happy now to embrace
The dust he once called
Into being, under the
Sky he painted and fashioned.
Now making home the
Earth he shaped with gentle skill
And wide-eyed wonder,
Feeling the grit under his
Nails and the heat on his face.
Mark 1 v 12-13, John 1 v 1-3
Biblical Desert Moments
He’ll face down power,
Won’t play those games of ego.
Instead he’ll walk in
The way of humility,
Disarming and creative.
He will not look for
Easy roads or a way out.
Knows how hard this life can be.
Takes the narrow road
Of humanity and life,
Matthew 4 v 5-7, Luke 22 v 41-42
Biblical Desert Moments
Here he is, living
Out his message, the good news
That God is with us
Even in the dry places,
Even in the wilderness.
Well acquainted with
Struggle, longing and questions,
Rubbing shoulders with
Emptiness and temptations,
Walking hard paths, being helped.
Isaiah 53 v 3, Mark 1 v 12-13
Biblical Desert Moments
Bubbling up in him
As he walks those dusty paths:
Love, joy, peace, patience,
Goodness, kindness, faithfulness,
Gentleness and self-control.
Those fruits burgeoning,
Flourishing in that dry space,
An investment for
Future days of bringing hope,
Growing in him for others.
Galatians 4 v 22-23, Matthew 4
Biblical Desert Moments
He knows the Psalms well,
And right now number 46
Is everything to
Him, being still to tune in
To savour the quiet voice.
40 days is a
Long time to reflect for such
A man of action.
Stepping out of the traffic
Could have felt costly for him.
Psalm 46 v 10, Matthew 4
Biblical Desert Moments
I wonder about
His mental health in those days,
He opened himself
To all we are subject to,
So he may well have struggled.
He must know what it’s
Like to sail on anxious seas:
Not a superman,
But full of humanity,
And drenched in reality.
Hebrews 4 v 14-16
Biblical Desert Moments
Out there among the
Wild animals, facing threat
And fierce danger.
Predators with teeth,
Seeking to harm and hurt him.
He is preparing
Himself for the insults he
Will face, the questions
Raised by his life and message,
The lonely nights and hard days.
Mark 1 v 11-12, Luke 13 v 1-5
Biblical Desert Moments
Though there is much here
That is dry and empty, and
Seems all too lifeless,
Yet he’s here because of life,
He’s here storing resources.
He has not come to
Put down or belittle us,
Not cancel or
Condemn us, but to bring us
A new way of being us.
John 10 v 10-11, Luke 4 v 1
Biblical Desert Moments
Perhaps, as he now
Empties himself here in this
Desert, he is mak-
-ing way for the fullness of
God to expand within him.
So he can bring full
Life to all he meets down the
Ages. Knowing he
must fill a tomb with himself,
So he can break out of it.
John 10 v 10, Matthew 27 v 57-61
Biblical Desert Moments
All humankind can
Seem small, insignificant,
Just like grasshoppers…
Ants contriving our own worlds,
Mere cogs in a machine.
Yet he’s here now.
To show us we are more than
Specks of desert dust,
We’re known, unique and precious,
Part of a bigger picture.
Isaiah 40 v 22, Psalm 139
Biblical Desert Moments
Lead us to pools of
Living water in the dry
And dusty places
Of these days, please, we pray, Lord.
Strengthen us for this journey.
May we have eyes to
Spot the unexpected signs
Of life and colour,
Those flowers in the desert,
Refresh and inspire us, please.
Isaiah 35
Biblical Desert Moments
And so begins his
Twenty-four-seven mission,
Three years of sacrifice
And washing the feet of those
He’ll meet… friends and enemies.
In this stony ground
He prepares to offer a
Roadmap for switching
Stony hearts with brand new hearts,
Whole and responsive to God.
Jeremiah 24 v 7, Ezekiel 36 v 26
Biblical Desert Moments
We ache at times for
So much more, our days long, our
Nights even longer,
Like lost, dry-space wanderers,
Chasing life’s wind-blown litter.
Not easy to tell
Which voices that bombard us
Are inspiration,
And which are mere distraction,
How we need that desert Son.
Psalm 42, Ecclesiastes 1, John 3 v 16
Biblical Desert Moments
This age of self and
Individualism can
Lead us into sad
Corners and dry loneliness,
Needing a place of refuge.
Longing for a new
Roadmap to show us – where now?
A footprint in which
To place our own, a life of
Truth and kindness to follow.
Psalm 16
Biblical Desert Moments
These battles prepare
Him no doubt for future times
Of temptation and
Conflict, when even his friends
Will try to change his focus.
And investment too
For one dark garden night, when
All hell will attempt
To steer him away from the
Very reason he has come.
Matthew 16 v 21-23, Mark 14 v 32-42
Biblical Desert Moments
Did he know all that
These 40 days contain?
Was surprise and the
Unexpected, part of his
Time in that tumbleweed place?
Most likely, for he
Knew we would face the unknown,
Be called to take steps
Into uncertain places,
In our own tumbleweed lives.
Genesis 12 v 1, Psalm 139 v 9-10
Biblical Desert Moments
Did he see the prints
Of all those feet that would trek
Through their own deserts?
Catch sight of the pilgrims from
The past, and trudgers to come?
Deserts being a
Regular part of life for
Most people really.
The wilderness a routine
Detour for so many folk.
Acts 8 v 26-40, Exodus 7 v 16
Biblical Desert Moments
Had we met him out
There in the wilderness with
His dusty face and
Grit marked hands, we may well have
Passed him by, missed his glory.
We may pass him on
This day, as we make our way,
God with us in the
Ordinary grit and dust,
No fuss or fanfare, yet here.
John 1 v 9-10, Isaiah 53 v 2
Biblical Desert Moments
He quotes that famous
Line, ‘Man can’t live on bread alone…’
From that desert time
Of Manna – bread from heaven,
Food pointing to God’s presence.
Not only kneading
Bread from the earth, but also
Needing that other
Sustenance – the living word,
Light for our shadowed travels.
Deuteronomy 8 v 3, John 1 v 1-5, Matthew 4 v 4
Biblical Desert Moments
He could have turned those
Rocks to delicious fresh bread.
Could have grasped power
That desert day. And leapt
Into the arms of angels.
But had he done so,
He might well have beaten off all
The arresting guards,
Climbed off that cross, and never
Given himself for us all.
Luke 4 v 1-12, Mark 14 v 36
Biblical Desert Moments
This desert life will
Be a watermark for him,
A daily anchor
As he seeks out quiet spots
To spend time with his father.
Slipping away from
The distractions and clamour,
to the wilderness
so he can hear the tender
voice of his father once more.
Mark 1 v 35, Hosea 2 v 14
Biblical Desert Moments
Did he shed tears
At times for the loneliness,
The emptiness, the
Sadness he would encounter
In so many people’s lives?
He would later weep
Over a broken city,
Unafraid to show
All he felt and carried in
Him, for us and for creation.
John 11 v 35, Luke 19 v 41, Romans 8 v 19-22
Biblical Desert Moments
He looks at his feet,
So dusty and encrusted,
From this desert trek.
Sees perhaps all those other
Feet he will serve and wash clean.
He looks at his hands,
Scarred from decades of woodwork,
Cracked and lined with life.
Ready now to reach out and
Bring comfort, strength and direction.
John 10 v 6-9, Matthew 4 v 18-22
Biblical Desert Moments
He will soon be out
There in the hustle of life’s
Days and nights, meeting
And inviting people in
To his life and his living.
A door, a gate, a
Road and a way: tentative
Steps as we learn from
Our mistakes and by walking
With him through the ups and downs.
John 10 v 6-9, Matthew 4 v 18-22
Biblical Desert Moments
He sees clearly who
He is, as he feels the hot
Sand and stones pressing
Into his feet, fully here,
Fully human and alive.
Yes, but alongside
This, he knows where he’s come from,
And where he’s going,
And the extraordinary
Power he holds in his hands.
This truth, this wisdom,
Will enable him to wash
Feet for the next three
Years, no need to make his mark,
But to love and serve others.
John 13 v 3-4
Biblical Desert Moments
Angels helped him there,
These Jacob’s ladder agents,
Earth-bound signs of God,
Often disguised as strangers.
These smiling daily heroes…
In the right place at
The right time, without wings or
Halo, just waiting
To bring a helping hand and
What’s needed for the next step.
Mark 1 v 12-13, 1 Kings 19 v 5-7
Biblical Desert Moments
In some ways perhaps,
He never left the desert,
Would forever walk
These tracks studded with debris,
Carrying life’s stones in his shoes.
Would never leave
The tough, raw and dark places,
Won’t take the easy
Way, the wide road, the short cuts,
Choosing instead the long way home.
For us
He has made this troubled wilderness his home,
He’s walked through the valley of the shadows here,
This Good Shepherd, come to save his sheep,
The king in dusty, creased, everyday clothes,
Dirt in the cracks of hands, grit under his nails.
He’s resisted temptation for us,
Done battle in the empty places,
Made himself raw and vulnerable for us.
Now the new day beckons, a day for meeting us…
In our eating and drinking, in our work, play and rest,
When the walls are closing in a little,
And in the regular routines of our existence.
Does the ground tremble now,
As he makes his gentle, powerful way towards us,
Every step sending out tremors of hope.
As he heads towards us today, invitation in his hands,
To call followers and leaders, dreamers and doers,
To build bridges, and comfort the weary,
To encourage the stragglers and sit with the exhausted
To challenge the proud, surprise the complacent,
To strengthen the broken, and open new doors,
To crouch with the crushed, and run with the heroes,
To wait with the undecided and startle the bored,
To dance with the free and wait with those in the shadows,
To set worlds turning once more, smaller and larger
Than we might expect, more present than the noise,
Or the silence.
Biblical Desert Moments
Are the tales forming
In his mind now? The farmer
Sowing seeds in the
Unlikely places. The one
Setting out for those lost sheep.
Can he see all those
Lost sons and daughters, hunting
High and low for life
In the shadowy places?
And the lives on rock, and sand.
John 10 v 6-9, Matthew 4 v 18-22
Biblical Desert Moments
Illusions really,
That’s what was on offer here,
A poor exchange of
Love, peace and reality
For an apparent quick fix.
His identity
On trial, his calling questioned,
To trade the sure path
Of hope and obedience,
For the lost road to nowhere.
Matthew 4 v 5-6, Genesis 3 v 1
The Son
Heat, bugs, and temptation,
40 days, the pressure on, then
Starts his mission, jampacked,
A rollercoaster that’s a fact.
Stories, wisdom, healing…
A man down through the ceiling,
Meets a woman at a well,
Gives her hope, she runs to tell.
Followers, foes, and friends,
The changing work never ends,
Lighting up the darkness,
Giving all, never less.
A woman healed in the crush,
He wants to see her, won’t rush,
She’s been wounded, he can see,
Gives her back her dignity.
Battling darkness, holding nerve,
Showing how to lead and serve,
Three years of life, joy and tears,
Friday showdown, Thursday fears.
Broken bread, offered wine,
Blood spilled for all time,
Friends confused, misconception,
Judas leaves, dark deception.
Garden night, prayers and sweat,
But it isn’t over yet,
Temple guards blunder near,
Friends cut and disappear.
Fools come and do their dance,
Jesus doesn’t stand a chance,
Pilate scrubs his hands that day,
Knows justice has been thrown away.
Mob rule, curse and spit,
A bloodied man nails it,
Lifted up, a sign to say,
Everything will change this day.
Six hours, a borrowed tomb,
His life cut off, as if too soon,
Sunday’s coming, watch that dawn,
See those women, hunched, forlorn,
Take a risk, bring what they can,
And find a resurrected man!
Jaws dropped, eyes wide,
Hearts thumping deep inside.
‘Tell your friends,’ he says to them,
‘Those weary, lost, frightened men,
Show the world this day has come,
New hope dawns with the rising Son.’
For Easter Week
A Sunday Moment
#palmleaves&freedom
The crowds spill out on
A hero-welcoming day,
The town filled for a
Festival now upstaged by
A smiling king on a colt.
The crowds want change and
So does he, but their visions
Are diff’rent, his plan
Leading to surprising loss
And unseemly surrender.
Mark 11 v 1-11
A Monday Moment
#anewwaytomeetgod
After turning the
Tables on folk yesterday,
He points to a tree
Without fruit, like a temple
System which has failed to love.
A house for meeting
God has shut its doors to those
Who most need it. So
Here’s a new place to meet God,
Made of flesh and blood and love.
Matthew 21 v 12-19, John 2 v 13-21
A Tuesday Moment
#aboveallpowers
A trap about cash:
Should they pay taxes to a
Corrupt oppressive power?
The coin he holds in his hand
Claims that Caesar is divine.
But he softly says,
‘Pay Caesar what’s his, and then
Offer God the rest.’
A subtle way of saying,
‘There’s One above earthly powers.’
Mark 12 v 13-17
A Wednesday Moment
#realheartfeltworship
They are up in arms!
What’s this woman doing here?
Wasting precious cash!
Spilling expensive perfume
In this nonsensical way.
But he knows there is
Sense in this divine madness,
Mary honouring
All he is, and all he’ll do
For all creation this week.
John 12 v 1-7
A Thursday Moment
#sustenance
How did he manage
To eat anything that night?
Knowing all that was
To unfold – betrayal and
Abandonment by his friends.
But he shares this food,
And uses it to point to
A feast that won’t end,
Bought with his blood and body:
We need food and drink and Him.
Luke 22 v 14-20
A Friday Moment 1
#morethangood
Time stands still in a
Way: this Friday will always
Be here for us, a
Place of forgiveness, a place
Where we can bring our burdens.
Three crosses up here,
The one in the centre now
Central to all time.
Casting its long shadow back
And forth through eternity.
Luke 23 v 32-43
A Friday Moment 2
#itlookssowrong
On this day, as he
now empties himself here on
this cross, he is making
way for the fullness of
God to expand within him.
So he can bring full
Life to all he meets down the
ages, knowing he
must fill a tomb with himself,
so he can break out of it.
1 Corinthians 15 v 55
A Saturday Moment
#godintheemptiness
A day for questions,
For emptiness and longing,
A day of hiding
And wondering if there’ll be
A tomorrow worth living.
His body lying
Quietly, as if he’s lost
The biggest battle,
As if all we had hoped for
Now lies broken in dust.
Luke 23 v 50-56
A Sunday Moment
#timelesstombforallofus
There are no words to
Truly sum up the telling
Of this story, this
Twist, this punchline, this feelgood
Dawn which tops all the others.
In a way it can
Perhaps only be glimpsed as
We visit that tomb
In our own time, our own way,
Seeing the Son rise for us.
John 20
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