A Well-spring of tears in the Desert of Ziph

There are many times I have been brought to tears. Movies, commercials, serious situations, watching people walk through painful times, experiencing my own seasons of heartache. It is in my very nature to be weepy. And it is not always dispiriting things that bring out the urge in me. Times of rejoicing, celebrating victories, appreciation for people and God's provision can produce the same reaction within me. I am a complex being, created in the image of God. But as much as tears are a common part of who I am, I don't think I have ever been brought to tears by the Word of God. Is that a mark against my value of the Word, and how I am allowing it to penetrate my life?? I don't know. I just know that as I spent time in His Word the other day, I was startled by the reaction I had. Absorbed in what I was reading, I was startled by the feeling of unexpected tears on my face. For just a moment, I realized that God was sharing something with me that my heart needed to hear, and I was so moved by how it suddenly soothed my soul. Here is the scripture I was studying that day:


13 So David and his men, about six hundred in number, left Keilah and kept moving from place to place. When Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah, he did not go there.
14 David stayed in the desert strongholds and in the hills of the Desert of Ziph. Day after day Saul searched for him, but God did not give David into his hands.

15 While David was at Horesh in the Desert of Ziph, he learned that Saul had come out to take his life. 16 And Saul's son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in God. 17 "Don't be afraid," he said. "My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this." 18 The two of them made a covenant before the LORD. Then Jonathan went home, but David remained at Horesh.

1 Samuel 23:13-15


The words "helped him find strength in God" moved me so. As I felt the tears roll down my face, I heard the faintest sound of them hitting the collar of my shirt. The Word of God was producing emotion out of me. All this running David had to do from town to town, just to stay one step ahead of Saul. All the fear, all the unknown, all the visions of what it would be like if Saul actually got to him. The fatigue, the expelling of energy necessary to hold on to faith, the heartfelt cries of frustration to God, more fatigue. And then Jonathan shows up to "help him find strength in God." Not to remind him that he needed more faith, not that he needed to be more spiritual, not that he needed to seek God more, not that he was doing this thing wrong and that thing wrong. He came there to HELP!!!!!! Let me repeat. He came there to HELP!!!!!! Oh, to have someone walk along side you at just the right moment when all seems lost and remind you to "not be afraid." To speak truth over your life. To understand the situation for what it is, and to be aware that more strength would be needed at this time. How available Jonathan was!! How perceptive!! How selfless!!! It blows me away. I am near tears again!!!!

So with anything I read that floats amidst the neurons of my brain and hangs out in my heart for a while, I had to share this with Gregg. This was just too moving to keep to myself. Too challenging to leave alone. In the midst of having your life pursued with the strong possibility of death, Jonathan knew and understood how taxing...how draining this continued running from evil had to be on David. He was perceptive enough to feel it too. Gregg and I discussed what it means to be a Jonathan for someone. We also asked ourselves two questions:

1) How are we "Jonathan-like" in other's lives? Do we stand along side someone and help them find strength in God when the situation they are in has potentially drained them spiritually, emotionally, and physically? Are we listening to God's heart promptings, leading us to those that need it?

2) Are we open to being ministered to ourselves in a "Jonathan-like" way? Do we let people know when we are need someone to help us find strength in God when our tap is running low?

I wonder if you are aware of current "Jonathans" in your life right now? Who is walking along side of you, just simply to help you find strength in God when you need it most?