The Purpose of Your Wilderness Season
A wilderness season is a make-or-break kind of season. Its purpose is to free you from sin and bondage so you can be transformed into the person God has called you to be. The wilderness is rough, and it may seem worse than the place you left. You’ll be tempted to go back to your past (relationship, job, city, way of life, etc…) not because it was good, but because it’s familiar. This is a new place with new challenges, that you don’t know how to handle yet. Yes, it will be tough, but if you want to progress in God’s plan for your life then it’s necessary.
God Leads Us to the Wilderness
The wilderness is defined as an uncultivated, uninhabited, and inhospitable region. Do any of these things sound comfortable or pleasant? No, because they’re not supposed to be! It's not a comfortable place because it’s temporary. You’re passing through on your way to the “promised land”, the next thing God has for you. Do not believe that this circumstance is forever and start putting down roots. Don’t let the obstacles stop you from pursuing God and your goals. Keep praying and seeking God, applying for better jobs, tithing, giving, serving when it goes unnoticed, and being faithful to God when temptation comes.
The wilderness is where God prepares you for the promise he’s given you; the next step into your calling. You’re not here alone or by accident. When we study scripture, we see that those who endured wilderness seasons were led there by God. David, Elijah, Moses & the Israelites, and even Jesus. Yes, they faced many tests and temptations, but God always provided for and protected them.
When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle… By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people. Exodus 13:17-18,21-22
The Purpose of the Wilderness
You may think, “If God has called me to an abundant life, why does it feel like I’m going through hell?”. The answer - Sanctification. The Bible says He [God] refines us like silver and tests us like gold (1 Peter 1:7). This is how He removes impurities (sin) from us. It’s an ongoing process until the day we see Jesus face to face. In this season, you may want to run back to what was comfortable (that relationship, those friends, alcohol, pornography, etc…) but that's the very thing God is trying to deliver you from.
Related Post: It’s Not Punishment, It’s Pruning: 4 Ways God Develops You
Consider the story of the Israelites. Although they were physically free from the Egyptians, they were still in spiritual bondage. They wouldn’t be ready to live as free people until they could let go of their slave mentality. They needed to be renewed and refined before they entered the promised land. The same is true for us! God uses these dry and difficult seasons to strip us of sins, habits, and strongholds that are hindering our faith. He's separating us from the “gods” we've been serving, so we can intimately know the one true God and be transformed by the Holy Spirit.
For you, God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison, and laid burdens on our backs. You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance. - Psalm 66:10-12
God Hasn’t Left You, He’s With You
What matters in the wilderness is devotion to God, nothing else! Do what you need to do to stay close to Jesus and not grow weary. It took the Israelites 40 years to complete a two-week journey because they didn’t trust God. They let fear dictate their actions instead of faith. As you walk out this season God may call you to dissociate with certain people or let go of specific activities. Do it! People may have a problem with it, but don’t let them sway you. Where you’re going is greater than where you've been.
God is with you the entire way just as He was with the Israelites, leading them as a cloud by day and fire at night, providing manna (bread) from heaven, and water from rocks. They never went without. In this season, God will develop your character, strengthen your faith, and provide for your needs in the most barren circumstances. When the process is complete, if you stay faithful, you'll be deeply rooted and confident in God. No longer behaving or thinking like a slave but like an heir ready to take hold of the promise.