[Faith-talk] How to Handle an Internal Drought

[Tony Sohl]

This was poasted by James MacDonald and he has a ministry called Walk 
in the Word.

His Church is Harvest Bible Chapel out of Rolling Meddos Illinois.

I wnated to shair this everyone and it's a daily devotiaonl that I 
get.How to Handle an Internal Drought

And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in 
scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a 
watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail 
(Isaiah 58:11, ESV).
More than just the seat of emotions, your heart represents the 
immaterial part of you that can know God. It’s the part that will live 
forever. Here Scripture teaches that our hearts are like a garden. If 
you weed and water and tend your heart as this passage instructs, 
you’ll experience a bumper crop of God’s grace. Conversely, if you fail 
to care for your heart, it will be overrun with weeds. Continued 
neglect will leave it lifeless and barren of anything capable of bearing fruit.
The best way to grow a lush and healthy garden is to keep it under the 
care of a master gardener. Isaiah tells us the Lord will fulfill that 
role in us. Jesus confronted any doubts about God’s interest when He 
said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser” (John 
15:1). When parts of your life feel empty and scorched, when you’re 
barely surviving, our Father, like a wise gardener, is working to 
guide, satisfy, and strengthen you.




Isaiah draws a beautiful parallel between what the Lord wants to give 
us and what an unfailing spring provides for a garden—life. Jesus 
echoed this promise to the woman in Samaria when He said, “Whoever 
drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. 
The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water 
welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14). Jesus offers a continual 
source of thirst-quenching, drought-ending, fruit-producing spiritual 
hydration for us.
You may have heard stories about the devastating nine-year drought in 
the 1930s that turned some of North America’s richest farmland into a 
Dust Bowl. One day in 1935, known as Black Sunday, the wind whipped 
across the parched ranches and fields, blowing up the dust into an 
enormous black blizzard and whisking away countless acres of topsoil. 
While most of us have never lived through a drought of this severity, 
sadly we have those conditions too often in our spirits.
Maybe you’ve experienced some parched days in your relationship with 
God. Perhaps you’ve known the sorrow of watching through weary eyes as 
your heart for something or someone begins to shrivel. And maybe you’ve 
had seasons where time with the Lord was non-existent and weekend 
worship was Black Sunday—not because of the pastor or the people, but 
because of your internal drought.
As dry and desperate as those conditions are, they don’t have to be 
permanent. Hear this: “Times of refreshing can come from the presence 
of the Lord” (Acts 3:20). Our heavenly Father takes joy in turning 
gardens that look like lost causes into lush green places of growth.
You can experience the fresh rain of God’s grace and mercy upon your 
life. He made that promise through Isaiah. You can feel a surge of 
energy as your eyes gaze in new wonder and awe upon the God who loves 
you. The heart that beats within your chest can pulse with renewed joy 
given by the Lord. God is not reluctant; He is ready and willing. 
Invite Him to be the master gardener of your heart (John 15:1).



JOURNAL
•       How is the garden of your heart looking today?
•       What are some of the ways the Lord has been cultivating you?
PRAY
Lord, thank You for showing me You are not only the master gardener but 
also the patient gardener. Forgive me for the times when I’ve let my 
garden get overrun with weeds or become barren and scorched. Thank You 
for the firm and gracious way You pull what is unfruitful, break up the 
soil, water my soul, and bring me joy. Thank You for the truth that, 
under Your care, all things grow as they should, in Your time. Please 
do Your work in me, Lord. In Jesus’ name, amen.