December 14, 2025 "A Promise to the Exiles" By Rev. Dr. Brett Vanderberg

We taught our kids the ASL sign for joy and held a glass of sand next to a glass of water—because when you’re in the desert, only one of those can revive you. That image carried us into Isaiah 35, where God promises streams in the desert, burning sand becoming a pool, and a highway called the Holy Way. I shared about visiting an Omani wadi—an oasis that felt impossible until we were swimming in it. Isaiah uses that same kind of vivid picture to awaken hope: not a sentimental mood, but God’s renewing presence where everything feels barren.

Many of us know what desert-life feels like: workplaces that grind us down, comparison that keeps shifting like dunes, inner lives that feel parched even when we’re busy and surrounded by people. We try to numb; sometimes we whisper the only honest prayer we have left—“God, help.” Isaiah meets us there, not with clichés, but with a promise that is both gentle and stubborn: joy is not a mirage. When God draws near, water appears where no water should be.

Isaiah also speaks of a road—a way through the wilderness. Jesus takes that promise in his own mouth: “I am the way.” Early followers were called “people of the Way,” because discipleship is not mastering answers but walking with a Person. It is embodied, step-by-step faithfulness—ordinary obedience that, over time, becomes a path home. If joy feels far off, don’t look first for a feeling; look for a road and take the next step with Jesus.

So I invited us to pray a brave, simple prayer: “God, help me believe that you desire to give me joy and gladness.” Not pretend, not hype—joy that flows like water into cracked ground. Even when we can’t feel it yet, God’s promise is sure. My hope is that our church would be an oasis, a place where the Spirit revives the weary, and that we would go from here as people of joy—not because life got easy, but because Jesus is with us and leads us on the Way.

Key Takeaways

• 1. Joy is water in our deserts Joy is not a mood we manufacture; it is the surprising refreshment God provides in places that feel lifeless. Like an oasis, it doesn’t deny the heat—it defeats it. Desert seasons sharpen our thirst for what is real, and God meets us there with living water. Look for the spring, not the sand. [36:29]
• 2. Prophets show God, not explain Isaiah doesn’t argue us into faith; he gives us pictures that train our imagination to recognize God’s work. Let his imagery tutor your senses: where is your wilderness? What burns, what thirsts, what seems absent? Naming it is how we learn to spot the streams when they appear. [44:20]
• 3. Walk the Holy Way with Jesus God doesn’t just send encouragement; he builds a road and then becomes the road. Discipleship is not abstract—it's step-by-step trust in a Person who walks with us. Small, faithful steps carve a path through barren places and keep us from wandering alone. Join the community of “the Way” so your steps stay aligned. [51:36]
• 4. Practice brave, honest Advent prayer If joy feels like a mirage, say so to God. Honesty is not unbelief; it is faith refusing to fake it. Ask for the desire you no longer have, and for the path you can’t yet see. Often joy arrives first as a road to walk—and only then as a pool to rest in. [54:35]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [33:08] - Learning ASL: Joy
• [34:32] - Sand and water illustration
• [36:29] - God’s water in our deserts
• [38:00] - Oman desert experience
• [40:16] - Oasis at Wadi Bani Khalid
• [41:55] - Prayer and Scripture reading
• [44:20] - Prophets show God through images
• [45:45] - Naming our modern wilderness
• [47:37] - Restlessness, numbing, and prayer
• [49:18] - The Holy Highway appears
• [51:36] - Following Jesus: people of the Way
• [53:57] - Invitation to believe for joy
• [60:09] - Offering: church as an oasis
• [60:59] - Benediction

1. In Isaiah 35:1–2, what contrasts does the prophet stack up between barrenness and beauty? List the specific images (wilderness/desert vs. crocus, Lebanon, Carmel, Sharon) and the sounds (joy, singing) that signal renewal.
2. In Isaiah 35:5–7, what needs are named and in what order? Notice the healing of bodies (eyes, ears, legs, tongue) alongside the healing of the land (streams, pools, springs). What does that tell us about how God restores?
3. In Isaiah 35:8–10, what are the features of “the Holy Way”? Who walks there, who doesn’t, what dangers are absent, and where does the road lead?
4. What did the “glass of sand vs. glass of water” picture aim to help us see about joy in desert places (“If we were in a desert, this wouldn’t be helpful… We would need a glass of water.” [35:47])?

1. Isaiah uses bold images, not arguments. How might “pictures that train our imagination” help someone recognize God’s work more than explanations alone (“Prophets don’t explain God. They show God.” [44:20])?
2. If someone’s “workplace is cutthroat” or their inner life feels “parched,” how does Isaiah 35 reframe what they should ask God for—and expect (“You wake up tired… you know this wilderness” [45:45])?
3. What does the “Holy Way” suggest about discipleship being a road to walk more than answers to master? How does this deepen the claim that Jesus is the Way (“I am the way and the truth and the life.” [50:35])?
4. Why is it spiritually significant to pray honestly when joy feels like a mirage? What does that honesty say about faith and God’s character (“God, help me believe that you desire to give me joy and gladness.” [54:35])?

1. Name your desert. Where are you feeling burned, thirsty, or empty right now—at work, in comparison, or inside your own soul? What one thirst do you most need God to meet this week (“You wake up tired… you know this wilderness” [45:45])?
2. Practice the brave prayer. Take a quiet minute together and say, “God, help me believe that you desire to give me joy and gladness.” Where is it hardest to believe that right now, and what would believing change this week ([54:35])?
3. Take a step on the Way. If discipleship is walking with a Person, what is one small, concrete step you will take with Jesus in the next 7 days (a simple obedience, a conversation, a time set apart)? Who will walk with you as a “person of the Way” ([52:01])?
4. Trade numbing for thirst. What is one way you’ve been numbing lately (scrolling, overwork, sleep, screens, substances)? What will it look like to bring that ache to Jesus instead, and what practice will you try in its place this week ([47:22])?
5. Move from cautious to expectant. Where have you become “cautious with joy”? Name one small sign of water God has already provided (a word, a friendship, a moment of quiet) and how you will respond to it ([48:45]).
6. Be an oasis. Who around you is walking through a desert right now? What is one specific act of refreshment you (or your group) will offer this week—a meal, childcare, a ride, an encouraging note, or simply unhurried listening (“that this place… would be an oasis in the desert” [01:00:09])?
7. Embody joy. Try using the ASL sign for “joy” in your personal prayer this week. When will you do it, and how might that simple embodied prayer help your heart remember the truth it points to (“Remember, feel joy… with that J.” [37:17])?