Isaiah 41:19: “I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, [and] the pine, and the box tree together:” (KJV)

The desert is a place of aridity, scarcity, and pain. The desert has little to no moisture. It is a place devoid of all attractiveness and comeliness. Nobody goes on vacation to the desert. It is regarded as a truly dreadful location.

The most important fact about the desert, however, is that trees do not grow there. It is devoid of plants, flowers, and so on. It is only made up of a large expanse of sand, making it a notorious location.                           

In the preceding text, God promised to do the unthinkable: plant a cedar and oil tree in the desert. Even in today’s society, these trees are uncommon. They are more valuable, rare, and useful than other trees.

The cedar is well-known for its large shades, which can provide shelter to both humans and animals seeking to avoid the scorching sun. The Oil tree, on the other hand, is well known for its enormous size. It frequently grows to be quite tall.

Given the peculiar nature of these trees, one has to wonder how God intends to plant them in a desert. That appears to be impossibility, but it goes on to demonstrate that there is nothing God cannot do.

  YOU ARE THE CEDAR IN THE DESERT

 God has no intention of going to the desert and becoming a husbandman or gardener there. He was referring to His Church in the preceding text; He was referring to you as a member of the Church.

When I was a kid, I used to wonder why God didn’t make me in a developed country like the United States of America or the United Kingdom, but now I understand better.

In deserts, God plants cedars. Perhaps your country can be compared to a desert; nothing appealing about it, a deterrent to foreign investors and tourists; God has planted you here as a special cedar in this desert..

            

Perhaps your family can be compared to this desert. No great man has ever risen from it for ages; it is full of financial constraints here and there, and every day, like Job, you curse the day you were born into that family, be strengthened by the fact that God plants cedars in deserts.

Even if your country or family is a desert, God has placed you there to bring beauty and comeliness. God will transform the desert into a lovely garden through you.

This means that even if your family is poor and devoid of wealthy members, God purposefully placed you there to cause you to break the cycle of poverty and emerge as the wealthy man in that family.

It also means that, even though your country is notorious for suppressing the dreams of youth your age, and is declining financially on a daily basis, God purposefully made you a part of the country so that you will be the change that it requires.

            As a result, rather than asking, “Why was I born here?” begin by asking, “How can I change here?” God has given you everything you need to transform your desert-like family or nation into one that is revered and celebrated by others.

It is now time for you to accept that fact. Your birth was not a fluke; it was not a case of bad luck. There’s nothing like bad luck in the life of a believer. “And who knoweth whether thou art come… for such a time as this?” – Esther 4:14

                

In His planning, God makes no mistakes. He placed you in your family, state, or nation with one goal in mind: to make it a better place than you found it. He brought you there to become the desert cedar.

Amazingly, the structure of the cedar allows anyone to come beneath it to be protected from the sun’s scorching rays. As a result, God has positioned you in your family and nation to be like a cedar to which everyone in need of assistance and protection comes.                    

 

This cedar was exemplified by Joseph. In a time of famine, he became Prime Minister of Egypt and led them through it. People from other families and nations would seek financial assistance from Joseph (Genesis 47).

God wants to do the same for you – and He will if you align yourself with His purpose. God wants to make you so great that not only your family will benefit from you, but people in your community, country, and the world as a whole will be influenced by your greatness. Therefore, no matter what is going on in your family now, remember that you are the cedar in the desert.

A GOOD THING CAN ARISE FROM NAZARETH!

John 1:46: “Can anything good come from Nazareth?”

 

Nazareth was a place of notoriety and very ordinary living in the Bible. It was so bad that both its occupants and its neighbours came to the conclusion that nothing good could ever come from it. But Jesus disproved them!

God chose Nazareth out of all the glorious cities in Israel to be the birthplace of Christ. It seemed too good to be true that the world’s saviour would come from a place as humble as Nazareth. Nonetheless, it occurred. God caused something good to come from Nazareth.        

Dear youth, you are the good thing that God has made to come from this country. Even if people ask, “Can anything good come from this country?” or “Can anything good come from that family?” God has placed you there to disprove their negative conclusions.

As a result, accept the responsibility that has been assigned to you. Do not bemoan the forces of life compelling you to be mature beyond your years; this is the force of destiny. Will you answer the call of destiny?

                

Change your mindset from a complainer to a problem solver starting today. Instead of complaining about problems, consider how you will solve them. Imagine yourself breaking your family’s poverty line by becoming extremely wealthy.

Imagine yourself transforming your family from an uneducated one to one filled with the brightest minds. Consider sponsoring the education of children in your community. Be inspired by this vision!

Work hard, study hard, and challenge your mind to always come up with creative and paranormal solutions! Greatness awaits you!