Sermon 2019.08.18
The Wilderness Will Flower
(Isaiah 35:1-10; sermon 4 of 4 in series “In the Wilderness”)

1. In the wilderness.  This month we’ve been walking through the wilderness together. The bible is full of wilderness experiences. Wilderness is not just a physical location. Wilderness can be any difficult or uncomfortable place or situation we find ourselves in. Your wilderness may look like the loneliness of losing a spouse. Your wilderness may look like a challenging workplace. Your wilderness may look like divorce, or financial distress, or cancer. 

2. Wild child.  For my family, wilderness came in the form of a 12-year-old boy. We adopted our son Cameron on the edge of puberty. He had been abandoned at birth in Bulgaria, abused in an orphanage, and adopted and abandoned by two families in the US before we found him. We knew Cameron came with mental health challenges – fetal alcohol syndrome, oppositional defiance disorder, and reactive attachment disorder, to name a few. But we prepared the best we could for this child that God brought into our lives.

The next few years were definitely wild. Cameron wanted desperately to love and be loved, but because he feared rejection he did everything he could to get us to reject him on his terms. He tried to commit suicide by cutting himself, strangling himself, and drinking poison. Counseling and therapy helped some, but day-to-day living was hard.

Anna-Lisa would sometimes have our kids Anna and Erick take books and toys and lock themselves in the minivan so Cameron couldn’t get to them when he had a violent fit. He chased us with kitchen knives. He beat my wife with tree branches. He was verbally abusive. He kicked the window out of our minivan and knocked holes in the walls of our house. Often I would have to hold him and physically restrain him so he didn’t hurt himself or others. 

Those years were dark and difficult. Our family definitely went into the wilderness together.

3. Meeting God.  Your wilderness probably looks different from our wilderness. But every wilderness has one thing in common… God waits for us there. 

I can tell you that I have never prayed harder than when I was holding the wiry body of my son as he convulsed with violent strength and spewed obscenities. Yet after 30-45 minutes, the fit would pass and Cameron would relax into a hug and cry himself to sleep.

In scripture, the Israelites escape slavery by going into the wilderness, where God meets their basic needs. The boy David flees for his life into the wilderness, where he grows into a strong young man ready to be king. The prophet Elijah retreats to the wilderness, where he hears the still small voice of God. John the Baptist ministers in the wilderness, changing lives. Jesus is tempted in the wilderness, where his faith in God proves to be bedrock strong.

Over and over, the bible shows God meeting people in the wilderness. Two weeks ago, Jessica and Megan and the VBS kids reminded us of God’s promise in Psalm 23… even when we walk through the darkness, the Lord is with us to protect us and lead us to peace.

Wilderness strips away the complications and distractions of life and lays us open to the powerful presence of God. When we are sitting vigil in the hospital, or hunkered over our desk trying to avoid workplace conflict, or aching with addiction, or alone in the house – that is when we are alone with our thoughts… that is when we pray most fervently… that is when God steps in to bring us peace.

4. Experiencing beauty.  More than peace, really. In Romans 8:28, the apostle Paul promises, “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” 

And in our scripture reading today, the prophet Isaiah promises the people of Israel that they will see the glory of the Lord: “The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom” (35:1). In a clear anticipation of Jesus, Isaiah says the crooked paths will be made into straight roads, the blind will see, the deaf will hear, the lame will leap for joy, and the mute will sing praises (35:8, 5-6).

Nature reveals this truth about God. Some of the wildest places on earth can be places of beauty. For instance, the Atacama Desert in Peru is one of the driest places on earth. Its very starkness is both oppressive and surprisingly beautiful.

Yet when on those rare occasions when it rains, the Atacama transforms. The earth softens and wildflowers which have lain dormant, sometimes for years, explode into glorious blossom. Photographers such as Gerhard Hudepohl have devoted their entire career to documenting this remarkable wilderness – you can see more of Gerhard’s photos at atacamaphoto.com

5. Mixed blessings.  This is not to say that God always makes the wilderness in our lives go away. Sometimes we continue to live with trials and sorrow. 

In my family’s case, the Department of Childrens’ Services eventually decided it was safer for Anna and Erick, Anna-Lisa and I, if Cameron finished high school living in a group home. He didn’t like it, but with his reactive attachment disorder it was easier for him and us to be family if we weren’t under the same roof. Cameron is still angry about the challenges he has faced in life. Anna-Lisa, the kids, and I all carry some emotional scars from our years with Cameron.

And yet, God mixes blessings with the challenges. There is beauty and good. We helped Cameron get his US citizenship. He graduated from high school and will graduate from UW-Stout this year with a degree in human development and family studies. In August, Cameron was awarded the Champion of Change Award by Governor Evers for his advocacy and commitment to improving the lives of youth in the foster care and child welfare program in Wisconsin.

For Anna-Lisa and I, our experience with Cameron has helped us to understand mental illness and the challenges facing children in the foster and adoptive system. It has made me a better pastor. And Anna and Erick are unusually close as brother and sister.

Would we do it again, knowing what we know now? Maybe, maybe not… most people don’t walk willingly into the wilderness. But if wilderness is where you find yourself, know that God is with you, that Jesus guides you, that your most essential needs will be met, that unexpected blessings and beauty can be found even in the midst of trials and tribulations, and that we are promised profound peace – peace beyond human understanding – peace even in the wilderness, peace in the knowledge that we are loved no matter where, no matter what. As Isaiah says, 

“And the ransomed of the Lord shall return,
and come to Zion with singing;
everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
they shall obtain joy and gladness,
and sorrow and sighing shall flee away” (35:10).

- Amen.