Pastor Victor Iruobe:There is Grace in the Wilderness(Part 1)

Jeremiah 31:1-4 ‘ AT the same time,’’ says the LORD, ‘’ I will be the God of the families of Israel, and they shall be My people.’’ V3 Thus says the LORD: ‘’ The people who survived the sword Found grace in the wilderness-
Introduction: Sometimes there are mysteries beyond our understanding. We often pray for the mountains to move. But the way God deals with our situations sometimes is to TAKE US THROUGH THOSE SITUATIONS! Through the waters, which WILL CERTAINLY not overflow us and through the fire He would not allow to burn us.

1. First of all do not let your trial become a reason for YOU TO BE ASHAME OR TO CARRY A BURDEN OF GUILT. Your trial may simply be a wilderness period of your life. Do not let this trial be a reason for blaming yourself. If you give in to feeling ashamed then you will begin to look for simple causes and as a result may end up blaming yourself. BUT PLEASE DO NOT BLAME YOURSELF! BE ENCOURAGED BECAUSE GOD HAS A PLAN FOR YOUR LIFE. THE WILDERNESS PERIOD MAY BE PART OF HIS PLAN FOR YOUR LIFE.


2. Secondly, in your response to the situation TREAD VERY SOFTLY AND CAUTIOUSLY. Your approach needs to reflect the same kind of wisdom that Mary the mother of Jesus exercised in Luke 2:51b.That verse reads ‘ but His mother (Mary) kept these things in her heart. During the period of our trial (or during the wilderness period) we will gain a lot of insights into the future and into our particular situation. This is the period in which we need to exercise ourselves like Mary did. We need to exercise the kind of maturity and deep reflection that she did.

My first illustration on this subject is taken from the experience of a minister. He had just ended a very uplifting and inspiring session from his pulpit. He then led the attendants to the meeting in an affirmation of praise to the Lord. After HE HAD LED THE CONGREGATION IN SAYING THIS THE THIRD TIME, this minister mysteriously lost his voice! He went through a period TRYING VERY HARD TO IDENTIFY THE CAUSE AND A CURE, including seeking medical help without regaining his voice. He also went through a period of discouragement and as a result of seeking God within his situation discovered this truth principle: He discovered that although he may not have figured out the cause of his health problem, God had been dealing with HIS PARTICULAR SITUATION BY TAKING HIM THROUGH IT! This situation of ill health also marked a wilderness phase of his life in which he could still experience the grace of God. Read Jeremiah 31: 3 once more. Thus says the LORD: ‘’ The people who survived the sword Found grace in the wilderness- The minister I have just shared about experienced the grace of God in spite of his ‘mysterious’ illness. Furthermore GOD HAS GIVEN HIM THE ENABLEMENT AND TOOLS FOR COMMUNICATING THAT GRACE. AS A RESULT HE HAS WRITTEN MATERIALS OUT OF THIS WILDERNESS PERIOD OF HIS LIFE.


3. A third truth principle is also linked with experiencing the grace of God in the wilderness situations of our lives. Be patient with yourself. Be VERY PATIENT WITH YOURSELF and REMAIN PATIENT WITH YOURSELF. During the wilderness phase of our lives we become VERY SORE WITH TRIAL AND TESTING! We are sometimes stretched to such an extent that we want to snap our finger and command a resolution of our situation in an instant. REMEMBER JESUS AFTER BEING TESTED BY HUNGER DURING HIS FORTY DAY FAST. IT WAS THEN THAT HE WAS TEMPTED TO CHANGE STONES INTO LOAVES OF BREAD. TO HAVE DONE SO WOULD HAVE BEEN TO PERFORM A MAGICAL ACT THAT WOULD HAVE DRAWN INAPPROPRIATE ATTENTION TO HIMSELF ALL FOR THE SAKE OF SATISFYING HIS APPETITE FOR FOOD. In a similar way, we are often in a hurry to escape the uncertainty and distress that can confront us during the wilderness periods of our life. But we need to remember that GOD’S GRACE IN THE WILDERNESS PHASE OF LIFE IS EVEN MORE REAL THAN THOSE CHALLENGES WHICH RAISE THEIR HEAD WITHIN OUR WILDERNESS SITUATION.

This brings me to my second illustration: A preacher was believing God for his church to explode in revival. He had linked a forty day fast to this happening sent and therefore he went through that length of time fasting in firm anticipation that this will be the answer. Well, when He did this the results were not what he had expected. As a result he felt disillusioned and disheartened. A forty day fast is a good thing but IT IS VERY IMPORTANT NOT TO FORGET THAT OUR PARTICULAR SITUATION OR TRIAL MAY BE OUR WILDERNESS PERIOD. This means we must not RELY OR DEPEND ON INDIVIDUAL METHODS FOR RESOLVING OUR SITUATION. WE MUST REMAIN RESOLUTE AND TRUST IN GOD. THIS SHOULD FREE OUR THINKING IN SUCH A WAY THAT OUR PERSPECTIVE ON OUR SITUATION WOULD CHANGE. THEN WE WILL EVEN CONSIDER THE POSSIBILITIES WE WERE NOT ABLE TO CONSIDER BEFORE. ONE OF SUCH POSSIBILITIES IS THAT GOD WOULD ANSWER OUR PRAYER IN A WAY WE NEVER EXPECTED.

Fourthly we need to take one day at a time and learn to enjoy the present moment or everyday life to the full. This is something which Joyce Meyer, a well know Bible Teacher continues to emphasize. When we have learnt to enjoy everyday to an optimum level we would see what we have been desiring. How do we do so. We need to do so by being thankful for God’s goodness in our present situation. To look beyond what may appear to be unanswered prayers and rejoice in the faithfulness of God reflected by numerous answers to prayer we have already had. Doing this in most cases unlocks doors and provides the link to unanswered prayer.

My third illustration: In the first year of my ministry I became ill and bedridden for nearly three years altogether. During this period I got referred to very eminent consultants through the assistance of two doctors within my family(they were relatives of mine). I ALSO MADE SURE I ATTENDED MEETINGS BEING HELD BY EVANGELISTS FROM THE U.S.A. WITH A PROVEN MINISTRY. None of these steps led to my healing! Eventually, I postponed my wedding by a year in anticipation of the fact that I would be healed before I got married. When nothing changed in my health situation, I received an insight into the situation. i.e. to begin my wedding preparations inspite of the outward circumstances.

God is faithful and I did experience healing, and the ending of this phase of trial. WHEN I CAME TO THE END OF THAT WILDERNESS PERIOD OF MY LIFE I DISCOVERED THAT ALL ALONG GOD HAD WANTED ME TO REST IN HIM DURING THE PERIOD OF MY ILLNESS.

Read our key verse once again:Jeremiah 31:1-4 ‘ AT the same time,’’ says the LORD, ‘’ I will be the God of the families of Israel, and they shall be My people.’’ V3 Thus says the LORD: ‘’ The people who survived the sword Found grace in the wilderness-(to be continued)

In part 2 pastor victor shares about the faithfulness of God during a tragedy in his family.He lost his firstborn son only 48 hours after he had been born. God has been faithful and today he has two daughters and a son by the name Joshua.