A little over a year ago, the Holy Spirit brought me into a wilderness season in my faith.
I could sense the shift from a time of encouragement and closeness with God, to slowly increasing griefs. People close to me started going through devastating challenges, a huge Spirit-led project of mine had recently ended, and I began to experience breaks with my community and friendships. For a while, it felt like bad news kept heaping on more bad news.
Wilderness seasons in our faith are absolutely normal, and they happened several times in scripture, usually marked by a passage of time involving the number 40:
- Noah and his family saw 40 days and nights of rain from the ark. (Genesis 7)
- Israelite representatives journeyed 40 days through the desert to scout out the Promised Land, and later were sentenced to 40 years in the desert by God, along with the rest of Israel, for refusing to obey and go in to take the land. (Numbers 13)
- Moses spent 40 days on Mount Sinai with God; then after going home to find the Israelites engaging in idol worship, went back to spend another 40 days with God. (Exodus 24, 34)
- Elijah walked 40 days in the wilderness to meet with God at Mount Horeb. (1 Kings 19)
- Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the desert for 40 days to be tempted by the devil. (Matthew 4)
All these circumstances had a few things in common: they involved a refining of faith, forged through challenges where faith required extra self-control or discipline to maintain. They were also seasons where God was revealed through deliverance and provision through the journey.
These times in the Bible were seasons of contemplation with God. Most people left those moments having grown in humility and trust, and developing an even stronger relationship with the Creator.
It’s a season of blessing and hope–though it may not appear that way at the time. Wildernesses are distinctive in being places that no one really wants to be: lonely, isolated spaces that aren’t comfortable or welcoming. However, significant change happens in wilderness seasons–new life, growth, or transformation.
Is this stage of life starting to sound eerily familiar? I think in this world, we’ll go through many seasons of struggle and growth. You may have already encountered many.
Honestly, the only way out is through–with humility and trust in God’s process.
My season happened to start around the same time as Lent. I grew up going to church, but not in a tradition that observed Lent, so the practice was new to me. However I found a local church going through a Bible study series for Lent, and I couldn’t help but be drawn to the idea.
Lent isn’t a biblical command, but it started early in the church (within the first few hundred years AD) as a time of fasting, discipline, and reflection, in the 40 days before Easter, starting with Ash Wednesday. These 40 days are meant to reflect Jesus’s time of fasting in the desert.
While strict fasting from food has previously been observed, in more recent years, the focus has been more on giving something up rather than completely abstaining from food. (Which is probably for the best for a number of reasons!)
Last year, I opted to give up shopping for 40 days. Not just spending on personal items, but also (silly as it feels to say) my compulsive habit of scrolling and browsing and window shopping. I was constantly looking for something new, at a great deal, even if it wasn’t something I needed. It had become kind of a crutch for times when I felt down or discouraged and wanted a pick-me-up.
When I noticed that familiar itch, I used it as a prompt to pray or spend time with God, maybe with a walk or reading a book. I also followed along with the Bible study.
The practice of Lent felt so precious to my heavy heart in that season, a place where God met me in my sorrow. Lent is going to be something I continue to observe annually from here on out. Why? Because at my best times or worst, I need Jesus in the same way. I need to be reminded of the power of the cross and the God who would give up glory to become a human and experience life with us, all out of love for us.
Is Lent a regular practice for you? How about fasting or a time of self-discipline? Sometimes I wonder if these are lost arts. In our society, it seems strange or even harmful to give up something you typically enjoy. However, to do this for a set period of time is absolutely biblical, and such a powerful way to be shaped by the Spirit as you get rid of distractions and lean in to what God is doing. It’s a time of trust and submission that even though we’re limited and in need as human beings, what we lack will be provided by God.
Sometimes that kind of focus, humility, and trust can only come out of a wilderness season. Instead of avoiding that kind of discipline, may we receive it with open hands, going through the process of being grown and refined and drawing near to God, and may we see all the beautiful transformation he has for us in that place.
PIN THIS!
Read more of Jenn’s contributions to AllMomDoes here.
