Our Wilderness Experience

I love it when the Bible comes alive.

As we were preparing to move to the “Field” in Padstow, our friend—who was towing one of the caravans for us—asked me how I was finding the Wilderness.

Slightly taken aback, I replied that it didn’t feel like we were in the Wilderness. But even as I was saying it, I felt that I needed to spend some time pondering that thought.

I am YHVH your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery/bondage. Exodus 20:2

God took His people out of Egypt, a land full of pagan idolatry. It was 400 years after Joseph (Genesis 15:12–14), and I suspect that God was no longer followed in the same way Abraham had followed Him. To draw His people close again, He took them out of that land—away from all the idols—and met with them. He gave them His righteous instructions, that they might be His treasured possession among all peoples, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Exodus 19:5–6). Wow—what a God, to desire that for His people.

I think I have always viewed the wilderness experience as something of a drudgery. Just listen to the complaining: “No water… the food was better in Egypt… we want to go back… it was better there.” In many ways, the first wilderness experience probably was worse in their eyes. Yes, in Egypt they were slaves, but they had food, they knew where their water was coming from, and they stayed in one place. Life was hard, but it was predictable—comfortable pain.

And so, in many ways, our friend’s comment resonated deeply with us and caused us to look at this journey with fresh eyes. Yes, we have been released from bondage. Suddenly there are no big bills to worry about. Our clothes and belongings have been reduced to a minimum, and that alone makes us feel lighter. God has also miraculously set Pete free from the “daily grind” while still providing an income.

On the other hand, we are now nomadic, with no safety net. Dependent on God’s direction and provision, we must wait on Him for instructions—when to move and how.

The question is this: do we learn from the Israelites’ mistakes? Will we see each stripping away as a blessing? Will we stand at Mount Sinai, washed and dressed in our best, ready to hear and obey? Or will the demand to stand there without our “worldly comforts” be too much for us? Will Egypt continue to call us back to the cucumbers and melons?

I asked the children in the van on the way up what the one thing is that you must never do in the wilderness. You guessed it: COMPLAIN!

So we are choosing to embrace whatever God sends our way and to make the best of it, trusting that He will lead us to our destination—hopefully as more mature followers—while learning to be joyful in all things.

And after pondering this journey, I think all of us, including the children, would not give up a single part of it. It is a joy and a delight to be led by the Cloud of His Presence. In one motion, He has stripped us of our desire for houses, holidays, and empty treasures. These things suddenly have no value to us. We desire only to walk in the way He directs—whether that is Israel, or a caravan (or two) in a field. And we couldn’t be happier.

So our vision for this particular leg of the journey is to focus on our children. The last three and a half months have been very busy—amazing, and full of lessons—but now it’s time to hunker down, put a few things right, and simply enjoy being parents.

UPDATE

So we have been here for three and a half weeks now, and it’s amazing. We are living in two touring caravans: a small one for the two girls, and a larger one that houses Pete, myself, and the three smallest children. The two older boys have a pod in the awning. It’s much easier than having all the children sleeping in one caravan, which we did for a week or so while we were at Pete’s parents’. Nine people in a five-berth caravan…

Both caravans have an awning, and there’s a tarp stretched between them so we can sit in the shade and have shelter from the rain. Pete also put up a composting toilet to save on emptying the toilet cassettes. Until now, we’ve either eaten inside at the table or outside on camping chairs, which isn’t very easy for the little ones. When we were out the other day, we spotted some large pallets, and now we have a table again.

I think the greatest adventure is the laundry. I said to Pete that if we were going to camp like this for an unknown length of time, then I needed a washing machine. So we bought a small portable twin tub. At first, doing the laundry took hours. It only takes 3.5 kg per load. I think I’m getting into a good rhythm now—getting enough water ready for the next day, and generally managing two loads (sometimes three) in the same water before draining it and adding rinse water. If you use the water too many times, the clothes start to smell like a dog blanket.

Ah, water. There’s a tap at the top of the field, and we have four water barrels. Laundry uses quite a lot of water, so the children make frequent trips to the tap to fill them up. We’ve developed a really good siphoning system to get water out of the barrels into buckets for various uses—laundry, washing up, and filling the water filter. The caravans also draw from the barrels, so we do have hot water and showers. But you don’t really realise how precious water is until you have to go and fetch it yourself. There’s a song in South Africa about children not playing in the water because the elders want to drink it—I think I understand that now.

Cooking is also quite interesting. I found an easy spelt bread recipe, so I can make a reasonably simple loaf and get it cooked in my very strange caravan gas oven. Thanks to my time in Devon in the static, it’s not a complete shock to the system. Pete also treated me to a cast-iron gas hob with two rings. It sits on a table in the awning, so I don’t have to cook inside. We had a chuckle the other day—I always wanted one of those big range cookers with six hobs and multiple ovens. Now I have two ovens, two grills, and ten gas rings!

We thought our time here would be very quiet—time to find our rhythm again, spend time together in God’s Word, and relax. God had other plans. We’ve barely had a quiet moment and have had a steady stream of visitors. I had to do a bit of heart work, as I can be rather precious about my own space. And so far, it’s been wonderful. We’ve looked after our friends’ three boys for a few days, as well as hosting a couple of surprise visitors. One day we had twelve children! I’m really looking forward to seeing how God is going to use this time. If we only have one month here, I think it’s going to fly by.

So we are praying for many miracles right now—praying that my passport will arrive, and that Israel’s borders will open so we can go and help with the harvest. Because HaYovel is unable to operate, the grapes are ripening on the vines with only a few staff onsite to harvest them. The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few. Please pray that God will send the labourers. We are longing to be in the land and do what we can to help. Even if all we did was harvest grapes—without tours or sightseeing—it would be such a blessing. It’s where we want to be.

So we are expecting exciting times ahead!