Awe struck wonder and amazement describe, in part, my experience for the last seven days on this journey of a fresh vision of God – 40 Day Fast to Easter!

Each time I commit to a “fast” (usually from dairy & sugar), I also commit to knowing more of Yahweh, Jehovah God, our Creator, asking for fresh insight as He reveals His Word. He is my Shepherd, and I am His little lamb. He has brought me to nourishing pastures and calm still waters. He continues to purge me spiritually while leading me to new discoveries (Psalm 23).

Recently, I learned the meaning of an Old Testament word, which was a happy surprise for me: the root of the Hebrew word for wilderness, midbar, means “word.”*

“Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years…He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna…to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD” (Deuteronomy 8:2-3).

God honors a heart longing to know Him, and thus He graciously grants hidden gems from His Word. I know His plan for me is to experience a wilderness environment where I can leave distractions behind and prepare to receive this treasure. Any setting that isolates us in His presence can become a spiritual oasis providing streams in the desert!

“Biblically, the wilderness is a place of dependent, disciplined, purifying solitude where God must be trusted. Deserts bring people quickly to the end of their self-sufficiency and independence.”*

Through these “Forty Daily Reflections” God is certainly providing! You might think, “Oh, how lucky you were to find that book! What amazing fate that is! Can you believe the sheer chance of that?!” But, no, luck had nothing to do with it! It was my Sovereign LORD; who planned it out in advance that this book was waiting for me in my husband’s library. Nothing touches us without God’s sanctioning!

Awe struck wonder and amazement is my 40-day fast!

*While Shepherds Watch Their Flocks, by Dr. Timothy S. Laniek