“I pray your book will help those who are stuck between Egypt and the promised land to find escape and entrance. This book challenges and is ministering life. Press on!” – Leonard Ravenhill (18 June 1907 – 27 November 1994)
“Doug has a word from the Lord…and has been used of God to rescue the perishing from the clutches of the enemy. This is Warrior Material.” – Stephen L. Hill (January 17, 1954 – March 9, 2014)
At times do you seem stuck in a wilderness?
Throughout Scripture, the wilderness is never intended to be a destination. It is a place of preparation. It is where God forms character, tests motives, reveals hearts, and teaches His people to trust Him. The wilderness is not meant to destroy us; it is meant to transform us.
When the children of Israel left Egypt, they did so with excitement, expectation, and anticipation.
They had witnessed God’s mighty power.
They had seen miraculous deliverance.
They were no longer slaves.
They were moving toward a promise.
Yet somewhere between Egypt and the Promised Land, many lost sight of why they were on the journey.
The wilderness exposed what was still in their hearts.
The very people who had witnessed the plagues, crossed through the Red Sea, eaten manna from heaven, and received water from a rock began to complain, grumble, and long for the past. They became discouraged by the process and distracted from the promise.
The same temptation confronts us today.
Whether in our personal walk with God, our families, our ministries, or even in seasons of corporate revival, we can become weary in the journey. When expectations are not fulfilled as quickly as we hoped, when difficulties persist longer than we anticipated, or when disappointments arise, we can begin to settle for less than God’s best.
The Lesson of the Two-and-a-Half Tribes:
One of the often overlooked stories in Scripture is found in Numbers 32.
The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh saw the land east of the Jordan and decided it was sufficient for them. The land appeared prosperous. It was suitable for their livestock. It met their immediate needs.
Rather than crossing fully into the inheritance God had promised, they requested permission to settle on the eastern side of the Jordan.
While they agreed to help their brothers fight for the Promised Land, they themselves chose not to fully enter into it.
The decision may have seemed practical, but it reveals an important spiritual principle: It is possible to experience God’s blessings and still stop short of God’s fullest purposes.
The journey had been long.
The battles had been difficult.
The easier path seemed attractive.
How often do we do the same?We settle for what is comfortable rather than what is promised.
We settle for what is familiar rather than what requires faith.
We settle for what is attainable in our own strength rather than what demands dependence upon God.
There is a difference between God’s permissive will and His perfect will. Romans 12:2 reminds us to pursue that “good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
Too often we stop at good when God is calling us to His best.
Revival Requires More Than Excitement:
One of the dangers in both personal and corporate revival is mistaking moments for maturity.
Revival moments are important.
They awaken hearts.
They stir faith.
They remind us that God is moving.
But signs and wonders alone cannot sustain us.
Israel experienced miracle after miracle, yet miracles did not prevent them from complaining.
Miracles did not keep them from discouragement.
Miracles did not automatically produce obedience.
Miracles were markers along the journey, not substitutes for covenant commitment.
What sustained God’s people was not simply what they experienced but what they believed.
Likewise today, revival cannot be sustained merely by emotional experiences, powerful meetings, or extraordinary manifestations. Genuine revival requires covenant commitment to God, to His Word, and to one another.
Without covenant, people eventually drift.
The Danger of Disillusionment:
Disillusionment often occurs when our expectations collide with reality. The Israelites expected immediate fulfillment but encountered a wilderness.
They expected arrival but experienced process.
Many believers struggle for the same reason.
We celebrate the promise but resist the preparation.
We desire the blessing but avoid the refining.
We want resurrection power without understanding the fellowship of His sufferings.
Yet God uses the wilderness to develop perseverance, humility, dependence, and trust. The wilderness reveals whether we are pursuing God for His presence or merely for His provision.
Whenever we lose sight of God’s larger purposes, discouragement begins to dominate our perspective.
This is why many revivals lose momentum. The focus gradually shifts from God’s eternal purposes to personal preferences. The vision becomes smaller. The mission becomes secondary. Self-interest replaces kingdom purpose.
The answer is not to abandon the journey. The answer is to recover vision.
Maintaining a Vision of Hope:
Hope is not wishful thinking. Biblical hope is confident expectation based upon God’s faithfulness.A vision of hope keeps us moving forward when circumstances seem contrary.
Abraham maintained hope while waiting for the promise.
Moses maintained hope through forty years of wilderness.
Joshua and Caleb maintained hope when ten spies spread fear.
Jesus endured the Cross because of the joy set before Him.
Hope allows us to see beyond the present challenge and into God’s future purpose.
Without faith, people compromise.
We must continually remind ourselves of what God has said and where He is leading us.
The wilderness is temporary.
The promise remains.
God is faithful.
Personal and Corporate Revival:
The lessons of the wilderness apply both individually and corporately.As individuals, we must guard our hearts against discouragement and complacency.
As churches and ministries, we must guard against becoming consumed with programs, personalities, preferences, or temporary successes.Revival is not about building our kingdoms.
Revival is about advancing His Kingdom.
Corporate revival flourishes when God’s people remain united around His purposes rather than divided by personal agendas. It grows when we maintain covenant relationships and keep our eyes fixed on Christ.
The Call to Persevere:
The challenges you face today are not the final chapter.
The delays, disappointments, and difficulties are part of God’s refining process.
Do not allow weariness to rob you of your vision.
Do not allow discouragement to diminish your faith.
Do not allow comfort to replace calling.
The tribes that settled east of the Jordan found a place that was sufficient, but they missed the fullness of what God intended.
May we learn from their example.
Let us press forward.
Let us remain faithful.
Let us renew our covenant commitment to God and to one another.
And let us refuse to settle for anything less than God’s best.
The promise is still ahead. Keep moving forward.
Renew your covenant commitment to God, His Word, His promises, and His people. Refuse to settle on the wrong side of the Jordan. Keep your eyes fixed on Christ and continue pressing toward the fullness of God’s purpose for your life, your family, your ministry, and your generation.
By Doug Stringer