048 David McIntyre on surviving your wilderness

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Can surviving your wilderness teach you to depend on God? David McIntyre believes it can. After spending 66 days in the wilderness to go on to win season two of The History Channel’s Alone show, Dave came away from the experience with a newfound reliance on God’s strength in the absence of his own.

Who is David McIntyre? Dave McIntyre is a wilderness survival instructor in Michigan. A former missionary to Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Dave founded Per Ardua wilderness training facility where he taught wilderness survival courses to other missionaries, as well as to military and police groups. Dave won season two of The History Channel’s Alone show, where he spent 66 days alone in the wilderness and came away with a half a million dollars. Today, Dave speaks about his experience of faith and perseverance at churches, conferences, and schools across the country.

After going through a rather unexpected divorce, Dave felt stranded. He was recruited to participate in the Alone show, and thought it would be the perfect adventure to help him move on from where he was stuck. Through his experience, he learned to recognize his own weaknesses and lean into God’s strengths.

Quotes:

“Those things weren’t going to defeat us: they were just problems to be overcome.” — Dave

“When you stop eating, your body goes into detox mode. Mentally, the same thing happens when you are in isolation.” — Dave

“I could not receive forgiveness from God for things I had done and then not extend forgiveness to other people.” — Dave

“There are things that we read in scripture and know them intellectually. It’s another thing when we know them experientially.” — Dave

“If you don’t rise to your personal best in the face of your personal apocalypse, you will not survive.” — Dave

Action steps:

• A survival kind of environment helps you see how dependent you are on your own strength. Use those moments instead to focus on your weakness and let God reveal Himself.
• Your desert season is Holy Ground. This is where the supernatural work of God takes place. Don’t wish it away, work through it.
• When you enter a new season of life, ask yourself: how do I stabilize this?

Resources mentioned:

• Official website: davemcintyrewilderness.org
• Dave McIntyre on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and G+.
• The Fall Series by Dave McIntyre