From This Wilderness Into His Wonder

After salvation, God has a purpose or plan for each of our lives. He will speak a promise to us, but there is a period of time that we must go through before its fulfillment happens. All believers in the Lord will share a common experience. We all must go through a wilderness time. Before any ministry, there must be a wilderness, but after the wilderness, there is wonder and fulfillment.

In Hebrew, the word for wilderness is midbar. What is interesting is that the root of midbar which is dabar has the meaning of “speak” or “word”. God speaks to us in the wilderness, if we are listening. He also humbles and proves us. The wilderness period can last days or months depending on how quickly we learn its lessons.

There were many in the Bible who spent some time in a wilderness. Abraham, Jacob, Moses, David, Elijah and even Jesus Their examples were meant to guide us as we also pass through the wilderness. (1 Corinthians 10:1-11) God will make a way in the wilderness. And we will find that so many blessings come from the wilderness.

“Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth' shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:19

The wilderness experience can be a dry and dark time for us, but we must understand that it's also a place where God is. God comes in where it is dark even when it seems He is nowhere to be found. He made darkness his secret place (Psalm 18:11) and He gives treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places. (Isaiah 45:3)

It can be a lonely place and many times we try to escape it by trying to minister only in our natural strength. But such ministry is useless. The wilderness with all its testing is precious (1 Peter 1:7). It can bring tears to our eyes and soften our hearts but it can deeply affect in a good and productive way how we relate to and minister to others. We develop an intimate connection with God because He is solely the only One we can trust in this time. This connection we develop will help us connect with others.

We develop strength through a wilderness experience.  It can make us stronger in faith. It can cause us to develop perseverance and to acquire maturity. (James 1:3-4)  It can breed character and also humility. God humbles us. He desires to break down our self-life in exactly this way.

Every wilderness experience has its purpose so much like Jesus's time in the Wilderness. The temptation of Jesus (Matthew 4:1-11) gives us some real guidelines for surviving our own wilderness experience:

He was tested in the area of provision. Jesus responded, “It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'” We may have to learn the hard way but we will get to the place where we know/trust that God is the source of everything. And that His Word is faithful and we can stake our lives on it. We learn faith and endurance.

He was tested in the area of tempting or testing God. Jesus responded, “It is written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'” We can be so guilty at times in tempting and testing God. The times of murmuring and complaining. This can keep us in the wilderness so much longer than what was intended. We must remember to not allow our experience to harden our hearts (Heb 3:8-4:11) and stay assured that with every difficult test, God gives us an escape. (I Corinthians 10:13) He chastens us because He loves us. (Hebrews 12:6) There is always a purpose for his tests, so we must count it pure joy when such tests come. (James 1:2,12)

He was tested in the area of Worship of God and Him only. Jesus responded again, “...Away from me satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'” We can have so many 'idols of worship' that we place before God. It is often times, things we tend to adore more than God, can get in the way of true worship for only God. Things like cars, jobs, houses, success, fame, fortune, etc. The wilderness can help these things become detestable to us when we develop a deep desire for only Jesus and all He has for us. We begin to see what really matters in life.

My husband and I have been in a very long and trying wilderness. For me, I know that I have to submit to totally trusting God for our provisions. We also have found how untruths are constantly trying to creep into our lives from people we least expected. But we choose to stand alone if we have to before we ever discard God's Word in exchange for a word spoken from a man contrary to God's Word. I also have had to humble myself and repent of complaining and murmuring of conditions we've faced during this time.

Once we became aware of being in a wilderness time and learned that it does have it's purpose, it is so much easier to fully submit to God and his will for our lives. Resisting the devil in the times of temptation, by speaking God's Word over our situations and circumstances, and continually affirming His truth over and over again, he has to flee. (James 4:7) God's peace comes, as our hearts become opened to receive all that God has for us to learn. The only way to resist the devil is God's Word!!

We have been in a wilderness for several years. A lot longer than I think God intended. Why? First, we were unaware that it was a wilderness we were in.

Second, it's taken us much longer because of our doubt and unbelief for provisions. While in this wilderness, God has revealed to me that when we doubt and have a hard time believing is because we doubt His love for us.  His love needed to be perfected in us. Even though we've went through some dry, dark and lonely times, I do think from our perserverance and faithfulness in standing on His Word, no matter what, that God did share some great revelations to my husband and I both. And for that, we are thankful.

Third, we have done so much murmuring and complaining while here. We have finally begun to see and acknowledge that where we are, has been ordered by the Lord and has it's purpose. I then cried out to God and said, OK! We know and understand. Get us out! How do we get out, Lord?

The only way to get out of your wilderness experience is to “ignore the symptoms” (get your eyes off of the “waves”) and believe the Lord and pray and worship Him for who His is – the key is to focus on the truths of Scripture. Wilderness experiences are all about persevering with God. Not giving up! Trusting God! Hanging in there! Knowing He's Faithful! God wants us to go through the desert and come out the other end victorious! He is in complete control of our circumstances and has his reasons for everything! 

As Jesus told Simon Peter that he would go through a wilderness experience and that satan would sift him like wheat, he also said, “But I have prayed for you that your faith will not fail, and when you are 'turned again.' that you strengthen your brothers.” Jesus knows what we are going through. He prays for us as well. Though we may stumble along the way, the faith of a true child of God never fails – it is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives that keeps us moving forward in our journey.

When we pass the test, God will bring our wilderness to an end, because we have learned what he wanted us to learn, as such we then have a great understanding of who God is, how he works. Also we learn how much He loves us unconditionally and will take care of us, what His Word says and how we must rely upon it – as opposed to our feelings and emotions. That is a lot of learning packed into one experience.

The Wilderness is a symbol of “new beginnings.” So as we stand ready to emerge From This Wilderness into His Wonder, what He wants of us now is to walk exclusively by faith, trusting in everything He has taught us over the years and to believe in His Word alone. His goal was to sift us, reduce us and strip us down to Christ alone. That my friend, is God's primary purpose for the wilderness experience.

Connie J. Schmoll