The Wilderness Within

How many of us have found ourselves in a place of uncertainty, a season of life where the ground beneath us seemed to shift, and nothing felt stable? One month ago southern Ohio experienced two small earthquakes, 1 hour apart, a 3.1 magnitude in Jackson County and a 2.8 magnitude in Washington County. No damage was reported but rumbles under the feet could be felt up to 16 miles away. Maybe it wasn’t physical shaking of the ground but it was a job loss, a health crisis, or just the weight of not knowing what’s next. I remember walking through one of those seasons not too long ago during churches disaffiliating from our denomination. I, along with many other pastors, was full of questions but short on answers. It felt like a wilderness, a dry, lonely place where all you can do is wait and wonder if things will ever make sense again.

If you’ve ever been there, or maybe you’re in a wilderness season right now, you know it can be uncomfortable and even painful. But what if the wilderness is more than just a place of trial? What if it’s also a place of possibility and growth? Today, as we enter the season of Lent, we’re invited to consider how God meets us in those wilderness spaces, not to leave us there but to transform us from within.

Jesus in the Wilderness

In our reading from Luke 4, we find Jesus at the very beginning of his ministry. Fresh from his baptism, full of the Holy Spirit, he’s led, not into a grand celebration or a place of comfort, but into the wilderness for 40 days. He fasts, prays, and faces the very temptations we all wrestle with: 1) Bread: Symbolizing the temptation to prioritize comfort and quick fixes. 2) Power: The desire to control our circumstances and others. 3) Safety: The need for security at any cost, even if it means abandoning our trust in God. We can justify our temptations by saying we need what is right before us even if it is not an immediate necessity for survival. Jesus could have said, “I need to eat, I’m hungry and weak from malnutrition”. He could have grabbed the temporary power of the kingdom to make instant change and have a grand temporary influence over the people. He could have trusted in a contextual misquote of scripture to test the faithfulness of God, but he didn’t.

Each time, Jesus refuses to take a shortcut. He responds with trust in God’s provision, relying on the words of Scripture: “One does not live by bread alone.” “Worship the Lord your God and serve only him.” “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

In these moments, Jesus shows us that the wilderness isn’t just a place of testing; it’s a place of preparation. Again, the wilderness is not forced upon anyone, it is a place that we all find ourselves asking the hard questions, challenging misconceptions, and working out our own salvation with fear and trembling. The choices Jesus makes here shape the kind of ministry he will have, a ministry of compassion, humility, and trust in God’s love. The choices you make in your daily life will also shape what your future ministry looks like in your various relationships.

The wilderness isn’t new to God’s people. In Deuteronomy 26, the Israelites are called to remember their wilderness journey, it’s good to remember and reflect on where you came from in order to get where you need to go. After years of wandering and uncertainty, they finally enter the Promised Land. They’re instructed to bring the first fruits of the harvest to God as a reminder of where they came from and how God sustained them. The wilderness, though hard, was also a place of learning to trust and depend on God in new ways. 

Wilderness as Preparation

The wilderness is often misunderstood as a place of punishment or abandonment, a barren landscape where we feel lost and forgotten. But in Process Theology, we understand it as a place of becoming, where God’s persuasive love gently calls us toward growth and transformation. God doesn’t coerce us into change but constantly offers us new possibilities, even in the most challenging situations; the motivation of God is always more powerful than the demands of a little horned dictator.

When we’re in a wilderness season, it’s tempting to focus on what we think we’ve lost or how hard things feel. But the wilderness is also a creative space, a space where God invites us to rethink who we are and what we’re called to become. The hymn Jesus, Tempted in the Desert captures this beautifully. It reminds us that just as Jesus faced temptation and emerged with a clearer sense of his mission, we too are shaped by our wilderness experiences. The hymn reflects on the same three temptations Jesus faced, comfort, power, and security, and invites us to trust in God’s sustaining grace rather than quick fixes or temporary solutions.

This is a core idea in Open and Relational Theology as well. God is not a distant overseer handing out tests, but an active participant in our journey, inviting us into deeper relationship. Every moment, even the hard ones, holds the potential for transformation. The Israelites learned this during their wilderness journey. Their years of wandering weren’t wasted time; they were formative, teaching them how to depend on God and live in covenant with one another. The wilderness also helped many see the errors of their ways if the choices they made possibly was the necessary consequence of lack of faith or trust in an all-loving God.

The wilderness isn’t just a physical space; it’s also an inner reality, a place where our hearts are stretched and softened. Stretching usually isn’t comfortable, but it can be necessary for present healing and future growth. God doesn’t leave us as we are but continually calls, motivates, and guides us toward what we can become, revealing opportunities for growth at every turn.

Temptation, in this light, becomes less about moral failure and more about choosing which voice to trust. Will we trust the voice of fear and scarcity? Or will we trust the still, small voice of God that whispers possibilities we hadn’t imagined yet? That’s why Jesus responded to the devil’s temptations with words of trust and Scripture, he wasn’t just avoiding sin; he was choosing to trust the voice of God over the voice of fear.

When we sing Trust and Obey, we declare our faith in God’s ongoing work in our lives. The hymn reminds us that trusting and following God’s lead opens the door to deeper joy and peace, even in the midst of wilderness seasons. It’s not about blind obedience but about leaning into the relationship we have with God, trusting that the path God walks with us, even through the wilderness, will ultimately bring us life.

Right here in Ohio, the wilderness often takes the form of financial uncertainty, health challenges, or changing industries with automated technology becoming dominate while manufacturing continuing to decline. These aren’t easy things to face, but they’re places where God is still present, still inviting us to grow and discover new ways of being. It’s in those moments of uncertainty that we’re invited to trust God’s voice, even when the way forward isn’t clear. The wilderness is never the final destination; it’s the preparation ground for something greater, something new, something revitalized.

Finding Growth in Uncertainty

We see examples of this all around us. I sure you know of a  family where you live that recently faced a job loss or job change. At first, I’m sure it felt like the ground had disappeared beneath them. But over time, if they were open to it, they discovered new opportunities they never would have considered before, a chance to start a small business and rely more on their community. It definitely would not be an easy journey, but it would bring the possibility for growth and transformation.

Even our church knows what it’s like to face uncertainty. Like many rural congregations, we’ve wrestled with declining attendance and changing circumstances. But in that wilderness, we’ve found renewed purpose in community outreach, especially through our new community luncheon ministry. What began as a response to growing community relationships and an awareness of food insecurity has become a way for us to live out Jesus’ message of love and hospitality.

Uncertainty within daily life is a familiar companion. Farmers face unpredictable markets, industries change, and families often have to make do with less. But what if we saw these wilderness moments not as dead ends but as invitations to grow? What if we trusted that God is present, leading us to something new?

Trusting God in the Wilderness

I want to invite you to reflect on your own wilderness experiences. Where in your life do you feel that sense of uncertainty or trial? How might God be inviting you to grow in this season of Lent?

Here are a few practical steps: 1. Name the Wilderness: Acknowledge the areas where you feel uncertain or tempted to take shortcuts. 2. Look for God’s Presence: Even in the dry places, God is near, inviting you to trust. 3. Take One Step Forward: Maybe that step is offering forgiveness, seeking reconciliation, or letting go of a need for control.

Friends, Lent is a season of preparation, a time to soften our hearts and open ourselves to God’s work in our lives. It’s not about achieving perfection but about co-creating with God as we grow into who we are becoming.

Reflection

So, as we begin this journey of Lent, may we trust that the wilderness is not a place of abandonment but a place of preparation. May we find courage to embrace it, knowing that God’s love is with us every step of the way. Amen.

Prayer: Holy God, You walk with us into the wilderness, not to break us but to prepare us for something new. Help us trust your love in seasons of uncertainty. Give us eyes to see your presence, even when the path ahead is unclear. Soften our hearts to your leading, that we might be shaped into your people of grace and compassion. We ask this in the name of Jesus, our Savior and guide. Amen.