The wilderness is a place of mystery and meaning-making, it is a place where problems have you bound, you feel stuck, tired, discouraged, fed up, sick, broke or just plain over it. Chances are, you’ve found yourself in the wilderness for a long time and it looks like there is no way out. The wildnerness is terrible! And most folks wanted out of them yesterday, last week, last month or last year! But unfortunately it doesn’t work like that, once the wilderness lures you in, you are in there for a while and trying to get out of the wilderness before it is time is like pulling teeth. It’s painful, disappointmenting and most of the time useless, cause attempts to get out constantly prove to be useless.

Most folks camp out in the wilderness and just get tired of praying, tired of trying and fed up with even bothering to even hope again, but did you know that when you find yourself in the wilderness, it is a place where Jesus can meet with you often and grant you personal transformation, a new identity, blessings you never knew were possible and health restoration like you’ve never had before? If you can muster up enough energy or desire to want to know how Jesus can meet you in your wildernesses and grant you personal transformation, a new identity, and blessing you never knew were possible and even more, read on!

How do we end up in the wilderness?

On a recent work trip to Chicago, I got disoriented inside the building where the meeting was located. I hadn’t been there in several years, but I thought I still remembered my way around. I didn’t. And as I tried to find the office of the person with whom I was scheduled to meet, I ended up lost and unsure of how to get back to the floor where I started so I could begin again.

Sometimes we end up in seasons of wilderness without knowing how we got there. Life can be chugging right along when, due to any number of twists and turns, we can find ourselves experiencing isolation and uncertainty.

The opposite pathway into the desert is also possible. Sometimes we walk directly in with clarity and a sense of purpose. This was the case for John.

In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 3, we encounter John, a man who intentionally built a life in the wilderness. He wore camel hair and a leather belt while surviving on a diet of locusts and wild honey. People felt compelled to leave their city dwellings and go out to meet John, and when they did, they experienced spiritual awakening. John ended up in the wilderness by choice. Perhaps it was where he could hear God most clearly.

In the Old Testament book of Exodus, we encounter a whole bunch of people who had a very different experience than John. They spent about 40 years in the wilderness. It was not something they wanted, but it was part of their story nevertheless. The Israelites had to learn how to live in a challenging spiritual and physical environment for a very long time.

What can we do in a spiritual wilderness?

Whether we arrive in the desert by choice or by circumstance, there are practices that can support us along the way.

Pray and listen.

Jesus went out into desolate areas regularly. Oftentimes he did so alone when the rest of the community was asleep. Perhaps it was a time to process his own wonderings and spiritual restlessness. Out in the dark and quiet, Jesus prayed. He talked to God. We, too, can talk to God. In the spiritual deserts of life, we can also listen. Listen for what Jesus is saying to you through words that come in your life, circumstances that happen and the inner voice of the Holy Spirit who will talk to you if you will be queit enough to listen!

Release.

More than once, I’ve found myself in a spiritual wilderness after grasping too tightly to something I needed to release. Humans can clench onto so many parts of life — often to our own detriment: illusions about ourselves and others, laundry lists of unmet expectations, toxic nostalgia, blame and bitterness. The wilderness can be a place where we choose to let go. Let go of things that might be holding you down, hindering you or making you feel tired, sick, fearful, unhappy or just plain over it!

Imagine.

When everything is quiet and all delusions have melted away, the capacity to imagine sometimes returns. God said, through the prophet Isaiah (43:19), “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” The Creator and Connector of Everything can always make a way. When we’re navigating a season of uncertainty, it can be a time to reconnect with the power of imagination, envisioning all the possibilities that still await. Choose to set aside time to pray, think and listen. Invite Jesus to show up and minister to you however He chooses to do so. Then imagine how you would like your life to be when you get out of your wilderness, Hold on to that thought for as long as you can. Imagine how you would feel. Imagine what your life would be like. Imagine what benefits you would receive if your life really could be the way you imagine it to be, then release what you’ve imagined into Jesus’s hands and pray, “Jesus, if it be the will of God for my life to be this way, please help me make this possible, in your name, I ask and pray”, amen!

In conclusion,

In the wilderness of life, you may feel tired, depressed, and discouraged. You may feel as though your prayers seem to go unanswered. You may also feel as if your prayers are not benefiting anyone or anything. This is when you need to invite Jesus into the wilderness of your life and start listening to Him instead.

You are in a season where Jesus can minister healing to you, give you personal transformation, blessings, and health restoration. Additionally Jesus can pull you out of discouragement. John 15:7 states “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” That means that whatever your prayer concerns are today, Jesus has already answered them by promising that if we abide in Him then His promises will be fulfilled!

Pray and invite Jesus into your wilderness by saying the following,

Dear Jesus, I invite you to come in my wilderness. Reveal yourself to me and help me discover what to do next to cope with my wilderness experience. Minister to me, strengthen me, encourage me, bless me and help me to survive what I am going through so that God gets the glory in my story and so that I get my life fixed. It is in your name I ask and pray dear Jesus, my precious friend and savior. I exalt you in the land and draw near to you and I promise to give you glory, to share your name with others and help those you place in my paths because you have delivered me in, through and out of my wilderness season! Amen!