As we see more frequent and intense 'birth pangs' happening around us, as prophesied in Scripture (Matt 24:1-8; Mark 13:1-8; Luke 21:5-11), it is clear that the remaining events of the end of the age will soon be coming into view. These developments will be especially testing for believers living in the West who, hitherto, have largely enjoyed freedom of belief and speech for a great many years:
“Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. Because lawlessness is increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.” (Matt 24:9-14, NASB1995)
Considering the gravity of the times, 'the dwelling place of God in the Spirit' (the community of believers) urgently needs to be rebuilt – just as we read in a physical sense in the book of Ezra – so that, together, we may be a holy people prepared to discern between good and evil, face fierce persecution and complete the Great Commission. And, above all, so that we may be ready for the return of the Lord and the marriage of the Lamb (Rev 19). For these reasons, we believe that the Lord is calling His people to go out into a spiritual wilderness today in order to restore them – individually and corporately.
We naturally associate 'wilderness' with words such as barrenness, desolation, emptiness, isolation, lifelessness, loneliness and unfruitfulness. However, the Hebrew translation, midbar, has deep and positive messages to communicate to us. Of particular importance is the fact that it is rooted in the verb dabar, meaning 'to speak'. Therefore, from God’s perspective, the wilderness is a unique place of fellowship where He speaks to those with ears to hear.
Yet it is not only that. If we look at these Scripture passages referring to midbar and its equivalent Greek word in the New Testament, erémos, we see that the wilderness in the Lord’s presence can be a place of encouraging, healing, holiness, humbling, life, miracles, preparation, provision, rest, restoration, strengthening, teaching and testing.
If you are a believer in the Son of God, Yeshua (Jesus), and you have the inner witness of the Holy Spirit to the above introduction, then all of the content on this website is intended to help you in your journey as you follow the Lord. We ourselves are simply two believers in the UK, unaffiliated with any church institution, who are on the same road. As the Lord permits, we will write blog posts as and when it seems right to do so, and we will continue to gather and upload resources, music and links that we think may be of benefit to you. Please be sure always to apply Acts 17:11 and 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22. And please do contact us here if you have any questions or comments.
Shalom and blessings in Yeshua’s name,
Ben and Frances