Zero

For spring break this year, I had the awesome opportunity/privilege to travel to Jerusalem and Israel/Palestine and stay with some missionary friends there. I had envisioned the trip as simply tourism and learning more about Biblical geography/history, but there were so many more dimensions. The conflict between Palestine/Israel has more nuances than I'd realized, I met some neighbors and English language learners, and also had conversations about life and ministry.

The night before Resurrection Sunday, as my new (and old) friends and I traveled back from the Dead Sea and Masada, we listened to the worship song "Breathe."

This is the air I breathe

This is the air I breathe

Your holy presence living in me

This is my daily bread

This is my daily bread

Your very word spoken to me

And I'm desperate for you

And I'm lost without you

As we sang along, I was reminded of something our tour guide Yoni had said a few days earlier. We were in the same passageway from Jerusalem down to the Dead Sea area, and had climbed a small hill so that Yoni could point out Jericho and also the barrenness of the land.

Now, this is not representative of the entire land of Israel, because in the north, at least near Galilee, the land is more verdant. However, this is probably what the Israelites would've seen as they approached the Promised Land, after the Exodus and years of wandering in the desert.

Yoni asked us to consider "What makes the 'Promised Land' so promising?" Looking at this landscape, there is really nothing appealing. If you didn't have sufficient water, you'd die in a matter of days.

Yoni then pointed out the saying/quote (can't find the source), "Without God [we] are nothing." The word for "nothing" in Hebrew is the same as the word for "zero"--"Without God we are zero." Zero is simply a placeholder, is neither positive nor negative, and describes an amount of null size. Nothing. Zip. Zilch. Nada.

Without God's provision, presence, and faithfulness, our lives have no value. We are lost without God, wandering in the wilderness seeking a word from Him. We are desperate for God's presence, in order to breathe Him in and let Him permeate every part of our lives.

How often do I try to live life on my own, as though I could make it through every day without God's guiding hand? How often do I assume that I have it within myself to teach and minister to my students, with no help from God? How often do I chase after MY dreams and not God's?

The truth is: far too often. I need to remember that I am solely dependent on God's provision for His words and His presence. The "Promised Land" is promising because God restores what once was broken: relationships (primarily the relationship between God and humanity), hearts, and lives. I cannot bring about restoration by my own strength, but only through Christ. I cannot live without daily bread from God. I cannot exist from day to day without Christ. I cannot dream dreams without God's big ideas being placed in my mind.

Reminder: Without God I am nothing.