Times of testing

As I look back on my own life, I can see that, although these times of testing seemed very painful at the time, I now recognise how significant they were in preparing me for what lay ahead. This is all part of God’s economy – it was ‘the Spirit’ who sent Jesus into the desert (v.12) to ‘be tempted by Satan’ (v.13). In some ways, the ‘desert’ times and fierce temptations give an assurance that it really is true. The experience of the Holy Spirit is real but at the same time the spiritual battle and testing may be intense.