Luke 1:80(last verse of Ch.1) tells us about John’s youth, ‘And the child grew and became strong in spirit and he LIVED IN THE DESERT until he appeared publicly to Israel’.
John was drawn away from people to spend time alone before God.
Luke 3 begins with names and places of four local rulers and two high priests. It’s easy to overlook the fact that our Bibles are verifiable, ancient historical documents, we’re so familiar with them.
V2 ends with the statement, ‘the word of God came to John in the desert(Israelis speak of the Judean wilderness)’.
V3 ‘He went into all the country around the Jordan, (very low lying, below sea level, speaks of humbling)preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins’.
Graham Cooke has spoken about various wilderness experiences in his life and he admitted that sometimes he’d gone into the Wilderness himself, not led by the Spirit.
My point is that the modern church usually looks upon these experiences as some form of punishment but in reality God may want to speak to us and deal with us, so we’re drawn aside. The whole life and ministry of Jesus, Matt 4:1,2 began after being led by the Spirit into the desert, where He fasted and resisted the devil.
Wilderness or desert experiences were a launch pad for John and for the Lord, they led unto their life’s callings.
If you’re experiencing a particularly dry period in your walk today, God may be trying to speak to you about a change of direction, in computer terms, a reboot. You may need a shut down to reevaluate before opening up a new phase or direction.
God can speak to you in your desert experience, don’t shirk or waste it.
God bless you.