I went on an early morning walk through the woods with my dog Hunter today and we found this old barn. It caught my attention because I love taking pictures of buildings with character and this one was rich with character, texture and photographs well in both black, white and color. While looking at this barn the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, “This is what desolation looks like.” I walked around the barn looked inside it and pondered what the Holy Spirit said.

Desolation means a place that is dark, empty and foreboding; biblically desolation means a state of spiritual emptiness or lonelinesss, a place where we feel cut off from God and His love. In this place of desolation we feel like we have no hope and that we are alone. According to an article I read it is the feeling of being joyless, disconsolate and sorrowful and can be very overwhelming and even debilitating. The article went on to say it can make it hard to function normally and enjoy life (theholyscript.com).

Wondering about this old barn, observing all the character, contemplating what used to happen in it, I began to hear the Lord say, “Desolation happens when life leaves.” Immediately I saw the life coming back into this building as soon as someone living put their hands on it. Boards were strengthened, stain was applied, doors were rehung, and the structure was stabilized. It wouldn’t take a lot to rebuild this desolate place, but it would take someone living to enter into it and bring it back to life.

Friends, when we see someone or something desolate, what is your response? Do you want to bring it back to life or do you walk past it and think too bad, so sad? In this proximity revolution we are going to encounter desolate places, people, and properties, but we who carry life are to enter into the desolation and release words of life. We are being invited to give a hand up to people, places and properties, these opportunities to cause dead things to live is a mark of the proximity revolution. Can you see the beauty in those broken down boards?