Flood or Desert? Go With the Flow… or Remain Stranded?
than to remain stranded with no beliefs at all?
Is it better to stay in darkness…
or to light a paraffin lamp that fills the air with soot?
The Paraffin Lamp
Those paraffin lamps bother me.
I remember them vividly, the old women who sold sweets and biscuits at night on the campus of Ife in the 1980s.
Dim light. Thick smoke. That smell.
Fast forward three decades.
I return sometime in the 2010s, passing through the same campus on a journey to Ado Ekiti, spending a night at the conference centre.
And what do I see?
The same lamps.
Three decades later, with the invention of LED lighting, portable fluorescent lamps, and all manner of modern alternatives, they still had those paraffin lamps bellowing black smoke.
It’s possible there is some cultural, perhaps even religious significance to it.
Perhaps the paraffin oil is imbued with some kind of traditional African “anointing” to attract customers.
I don’t know.
But I have learned never to dismiss anything as mere ignorance.
Water always finds its level.
People always act in accordance with the level of water they sail in.
Back to the Question
Is it better to go with the flow of Evangelicalism, uncertain of its course…
or to remain stranded altogether?
Let’s reframe it:
“Is it better to sail the sudden flood in a desert, uncertain of its course, than to remain forever stranded on dry ground?”
The Case FOR It
1. Movement over paralysis
There are moments when stillness is not wisdom, it is decay.
The desert is not neutral, it is a slow death.
Uncertain movement can still be life.
2. Rare opportunity
A flood in a desert is unnatural, unexpected, fleeting.
If it comes, you don’t debate endlessly, you move.
3. Honest uncertainty
It does not pretend the flood is safe.
It admits uncertainty. That is honesty.
4. Spiritual resonance
Sometimes guidance does not come with full clarity.
Movement itself can be obedience.
The Case AGAINST It
1. Not all movement is progress
A flood can destroy as easily as it delivers.
Crowds have been swept into ruin by forces they did not understand.
2. It can justify recklessness
“Anything is better than staying” is a dangerous creed.
Sometimes staying is wisdom.
3. The desert is not always death
The desert can be a place of formation.
In the Bible, the desert is where people are shaped, not just abandoned.
4. Loss of discernment
Movement without understanding becomes submission.
And not every flood is from God. Some are noise. Some are deception.
So What Do I Think?
This is not really about movement versus stillness.
It is about discernment under pressure.
Knowing when the desert is a prison…
and when it is a classroom.
Knowing when the flood is provision…
and when it is a trap.
Because here is the truth:
Sometimes doing nothing is death.
Sometimes doing something is disaster.
Discernment
Discernment.
Discernment.
Discernment.
What Is Discernment?
Discernment is the ability to see through things by the Spirit of God.
Not just to see what is presented…
but to perceive what is behind it, beneath it, and where it leads.
It is not merely human insight.
It is spiritual sight.
As the Lord said:
“But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come.”
— Gospel of John 16:13
So at its core:
Discernment is being guided by the Spirit of truth to recognize what is of God… and what is not.
How Is Discernment Obtained?
Discernment is not achieved by intellect alone.
It is given, formed, and sharpened.
1. By the Spirit of God
True discernment begins with the Holy Spirit. Without Him, everything else is guesswork.
2. Through truth over comfort
You must be willing to see what God shows you, even when it confronts your beliefs.
3. By testing fruit
Not what is said, but what is produced.
Life or death. Truth or distortion.
4. By stepping away from noise
Crowds amplify deception.
Discernment requires stillness and separation.
5. Through the desert
God strips away illusions so you can see clearly.
The desert is not abandonment, it is training.
6. By obedience
Discernment grows when you act on what God reveals.
Ignoring truth dulls it. Obeying truth sharpens it.
In One Line
Discernment is the Spirit of truth teaching you to see as God sees,
so you can recognize what leads to life… and what only appears to.
#Dk
#OldManInTheMolue
#MyFrancisEssays
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