THE GLORIES OF CHRIST
When we reach the end of the desert, we find peace. Not the uneasy peace of a cease-fire or the ignorant peace of sleep, but the shalom of Yeshua. It is the peace that passes understanding that Jesus talked about, the peace that knows that it knows that all is well and that God is on His throne and that I am in the center of His will, doing what He asks with the strength that He provides. And it is good.

Having been with Christ to the cross gives us the blessing of joining Him in the resurrection. And that is the abundant life that Jesus talked about, the life that is not hurt at all by the second death.

Jesus told us to rejoice when we are unjustly persecuted. He said that His joy would remain in us if we abide in Him. He was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit when His disciples began to "get it" as He taught. We can know that joy, as well.

When love for God begins to truly mark my life, then that is all that is left when the dregs of my humanity are swept away. And I love Him with all of my heart, and all of my mind, and all of my soul, and all of my strength. What's more, I learn to love my neighbor as myself.

Peace. Life. Joy. Love. Sounds like a welcome oasis to me.