Wilderness Blessings
The title assigned to Psalm 63 is “A Psalm of David when he was in the Wilderness of Judah.” David’s life had moments of severe trial. Some were thrust upon him by his enemies; some were self-inflicted wounds of a sinful man. These trials forced him out into the “wilderness,” away from creature comforts of Jerusalem, home, family, and the court of a king.
The term “wilderness,” conveys the idea of wildness. Wild is the first syllable of the word. The wilderness is untamed, dangerous, uncomfortable, and harsh territory. One would expect only Psalms of lament and mourning to come from wilderness days. Yet here we find that David, while weary and thirsty, is spiritually strengthened in the wilderness.
There are times when we don’t realize what we have until we don’t have it anymore. David’s thirst for God and the worship of the Temple were increased and revived by their absence. His appreciation for God’s presence and blessing were awakened anew in the wilderness.
The wilderness is a good thing when it stirs in us new desires for God. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness…” The wilderness, where it is dry and desolate, where we grow lean and parched, can be a place of blessing if it turns our pursuit of satisfaction into a pursuit of God.
