We know full well that our spiritual life is and should be one of joy, contentment, and fullness. However, we also know very well that life also leads us in directions, some of our own choosing and some by circumstance, that instead of flourishing we are floundering; instead of enjoying peace and contentment, our minds are contorted by series of discontent and troubles. We often think of these in terms of dryness, dearth, and desert. In those times I'm tempted to ask myself, "Okay, where is the garden now??" "Where is the fullness of life; where is river of joy and blessing?" Life becomes arid, the sun is blistering, and the winds unrelenting...and we wonder, "Is this really what God intended for me??"
There is a phenomenon, although not mentioned by name in the Bible, that has been depended on by desert caravans and travelers for many centuries. We know it as the oasis. The one pictured to the right is a part of an oasis in Ein Gedi, Israel. By comparison to many others it is very small, but sometimes it is the small oases that become most significant to us in our spiritual travel through life.
The oasis was life giving and life sustaining for the weary travelers who had crossed miles and miles of parched arid desert, often walking into the face of wind blown sand and desert dust. As I contemplate Grace Gardens, I realize that we are provided an oasis or streams in our time of desert experiences!! God gives us Gardens in the Desert!
I recall the first time I ever flew over the land of Egypt, it was late evening and I had slept most of the way from Rome over the Mediterranean, but awoke and looking out noticed little but brown parched dryness below. In the distance to the left was a small ribbon of green that seemed to have no end. As we flew nearer and nearer, the ribbon appeared more distinctive and one could see that it was a river, and on either side for some distance there was green vegetation. Upon asking I was told, "That is the Nile River." I would learn later that the Nile valley and delta is claimed as the "World's Biggest Oasis," by the Guinness Book of World Records. What an awesome sight to see...the barren waste of the desert turned into lush and beautiful gardens by the flow of the river!!!
For the most part I have observed in life folks always searching for the Nile oasis...that "Big River" experience. As far as I know Ezekiel only found it once, and after a nice swim he said, "Then he brought me, and caused me to return to the brink of the river." From that point on the emphasis was upon the the fruitfulness of the terrain along the river. I have long decided that the river is not about the swim, but about its fruitfulness. As far as I know, not much grows on the river bottom, but its waters provide growth along its banks and through its delta.
God has given me few Nile experiences in my more than 64 years, but MANY have been the Ein Gedi spiritual refreshing and blessings. The spring pool in the picture is not comparable in some ways to the mighty Nile, but observe the lushness that it produces!!
Most of the vegetation of the oasis was for food. The large date palms provided their fruit along with being a canopy for smaller fruit trees. Often even various grains were cultivated in the area of the oasis' influence. The traveler not only enjoyed "fresh" food, but could resupply his travel stock of food.
Now I make a point that is essential in understanding how Grace Gardens is our oasis in our life journey. The oasis is not a place to go, or to reach...but it comes from an inner flow! Remember Christ proclamation at the Great Day of the Feast, "If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." The Samaritan woman at the well was privileged to hear Him say, "Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be IN him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." IT IS OUR INNER SPIRITUAL CONNECTION TO CHRIST THAT PROVIDES THE RIVER (OASIS) IN OUR TIMES OF DESERT BARRENNESS!" While people go here and there looking for the river experience...it is within!! If we believe in Him, we need not search for the river, it flows out of a heart and soul that believes on Him!! That why I stated in the first posting that Grace Gardens is not about a literal place, but it is in my heart and spirit. May I quote myself? Now I live and move and have my being in, "Grace Gardens!" And the more each moment is in the garden, I realize that the river of grace flows from the inner being outward and touches all those around us.
I am free from searching for "The Place," searching for God and "More" of God, searching for sustenance in my spiritual life journey! He is with me, He is in me, His love just keeps on coming! Methinks we search for God and the river without, because we do not perceive Him to be within us! So if you are struggling in a desert, be still in the garden...and enjoy the water, the shade, and the fruit! Much Love to All, Len
