If you’ve spent time in the wilderness, you know it is unsettling.

Your world can feel like it has turned upside down, things don’t “work” like they used to, and a certain level of disorientation sets in.  Most of the feelings we experience in the wilderness come simply because we’ve moved from familiar territory, into the unfamiliar.  Familiarity makes us feel safe and secure. But unfamiliarity?  That’s not so fun.

But this is perfect.  Outside of your comfort zones is a good place to be.  That is if you desire growth and change. The temptation is to return to safety, to what is comfortable, to the way things were before, etc.  Rather than turning back, the best way to get out of the wilderness is to go through it.  Making your way through it is how transformation and change happens.

Growth is always uncomfortable.

When I was a kid, I could always tell when I was growing because my legs would hurt so bad at night that I couldn’t sleep.  “Growing pains”, my mom would say as she massaged my shins in the dark of the night.  At the moment, I wanted those pains to go away so that I could just go back to sleep, but without those pains, I might still be 4′ tall. Without the challenges of life that you face, you won’t grow to your full potential.

Growth is a process.

You might stop growing physically at a certain age but we can always keep growing and developing towards our full potential till the day we die.  We like to think that life is about what we do, but in reality, God is most interested in growing us from the inside out.  What we do flows out of who we are.

So, how do you trust the process?

Here are some takeaways from my experience:

Believe that you are right where you need to be.

“Here” is a good place, even if you find yourself in the midst of the wilderness.  Even though it is uncomfortable and disorienting, this makes you ready for growth.  If you are in a wilderness season now, you are most likely growing in ways you cannot see now, but will later.

Gracefully let go. 

Whatever it is you need for life on the other side of the wilderness will be given to you, but only by surrendering and/ or losing it first.

Engage in matters of the heart.

Wilderness seasons are about upgrading who you are, so when areas of bitterness, disappointment, unforgiveness, and or disillusionment begin to surface, know that you are right on track, as long as you are willing to lean in and allow the heart to be healed.

Rely on your Inner Voice.

While there is no roadmap for the wilderness, you do have a Guide to lean on.  Trusting that inner voice, the Holy Spirit,  to not lead you astray is key to trusting the process. If I had navigated the wilderness strictly on my own, I’m quite certain I may have winded up a casualty of the wilderness.

Embrace not knowing.

Finally, it’s ok to not have it all figured out.  When you can come to the place of being good with that, you know that you are trusting the process.

Trust the instinct to the end, though you can render no reason.  Ralph Waldo Emerson

If you find yourself in a wilderness, may you learn to let go and trust the process all the way to the other side, knowing that on the other side you will not be the same person.  You will be better.

 

To catch up on this series, you can read Part 1 here, Part 2 here, and Part 3 here