Throughout Scripture, and human history, there is a long standing tradition of people of God being led into the wilderness. The wilderness, physical and metaphorical, was a place of crushing and desolation, of desperation and confusion, of pruning and testing.

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Moses was a man well-acquainted with the wilderness. After being a prince of Egypt, he spent 40 years as a shepherd. After returning to Egypt, he led Israel as they wandered for 40 more years in the desert.

David spent several years on the run from Saul. Living in caves. A fugitive of the kingdom.

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John the Baptist received his training for ministry in the wilderness. He ate locusts and honey. Clothed in camel hair. Filled with the Holy Spirit.

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The timeline of the lives of these great people of God (and many others) often looked something like this:

1. A promise is given, 2. They are led to the wilderness, 3. God fulfills His promise.

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The wilderness is a difficult place. In the wilderness, it’s often difficult to hear God’s voice. In the wilderness, it is often lonely. Those who are led to the wilderness often feel misunderstood. They often feel that they have failed or are failing. They often don’t see the fruit of their labor. They grow weary of telling others that a breakthrough is coming.

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The sad reality is that many men and women don’t make it out of the wilderness. The reason is usually that the wilderness crushes their spirit and they lose sight of the promise that was given.

 

When God leads people to the wilderness, it’s easy to feel like He’s being cruel or unfaithful. However, we must remember that God’s ways are higher than our ways.

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The wilderness is death, yes, but is a path to death via the cross. The wilderness is where our flesh dies. It is where our will dies. It is where our desires, our ambitions, our selfishness dies. It is where everything that we have desperately held onto to give us comfort and joy dies and we’re forced to realize that God is enough.

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It is where the stubborn residue of my old life is engulfed in the flames of refinement and redemption. It is the place where the seed of your life is stripped of its outer layers to reveal the destiny hidden inside.

 

It was in the wilderness where Moses heard the voice of God leading him back to Egypt. It was in the wilderness where the kingship was forged inside of David. It was in the wilderness where John the Baptist learned the ways of God before he prepared the way for God.

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It’s the very seasons where it doesn’t seem like God is moving through you that He is moving in you.

 

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As I look back on my life, the wilderness seasons are where I learned to hear God the most. It is where I felt closest to him because he was all I had. It was where I learned to love God, not because of who I am, or what I feel, but because of who He is and what He’s done. Those seasons were when I was humbled and crushed in order for my character to be transformed into the character of Christ. It was where my dreams died, and God’s dreams for me came to life. It is the very place where the promises of God are fulfilled, as the seed of destiny is cultivated in the soil of suffering to produce a hundred-fold harvest!

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People of God, there is a destiny on your life! Lou Engle once said “When God created you, He had a dream and wrapped a body around that dream to fulfill it.” The road to destiny will always lead you to the wilderness. When you arrive, praise God for the gift He has given you. Praise God for His promises, because He is faithful. Praise God for the wilderness, because He is producing something within you.

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And when you feel like giving up, remember that God is good, and He’s not done yet.