At a previous duty station for my husband, the church we attended had a practice of praying over families on their last Sunday before moving away. We gathered with our lead pastor, elder team, life group, and ministry teammates as we prayed for all the usual things for the situation— traveling mercies, safety, provision for housing, finding a church and community, health, etc. It was during this prayer time that our pastor said he had a word he wanted to share with us, but he wanted to warn us that it might not sound or feel encouraging in the moment. What a way to begin, huh?

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He told us that when we found ourselves in what felt like wilderness, we needed to remember that sometimes wilderness is not punishment. Sometimes God leads us into the wilderness for restoration, rest, and recovery. Sometimes it’s to prepare us for what’s next.  I can remember thinking, “What are you trying to say here, man?” Who wants wilderness spoken over their life? At the time, our family was coming out of an extremely difficult season. My husband had deployed four times back-to-back, totaling easily half our time at that duty station. During that season, we had also experienced multiple losses and traumatic events in our families. Now you’re saying wilderness is next?!  

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And that’s exactly what happened! There were many wilderness moments during those next few months. The truth spoken to us and the prayers spoken over us that day helped me keep perspective as we walked through that time. It wasn’t all bad either. It truly ended up being one of the sweetest times for our family. God used that time to help us rest and recover in so many ways. I can also now see how that wilderness season helped prepare us for so many things that were on the other side of it. I wouldn’t trade that time for something easier in retrospect, even though there were days in the thick of it when I wondered what God was up to.

When we think about things like wilderness or solitude, we might feel really uncomfortable with the idea that God could move us into those spaces. Maybe for the more introverted or guarded among us, the opposite is true. The stretch comes from transparency, accountability, and authentic community life. The reality is, the spiritual rhythms necessary for our development and well-being are not always comfortable. Hebrews 12:11 tells us, “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (NIV).  Being formed into the image of Christ is a long process, and not every exercise is going to feel great as we go through it. We’ve got to trust God with the process, especially in the uncomfortable places.

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For thought, here are just a few spiritual rhythms: reading the Bible, prayer, solitude, fasting, giving, fellowship/community, confession/accountability, worship, evangelism, sabbath, and service. Which ones come most naturally? What do you find the hardest? What do you forget about entirely? Take some time today to think about which area the Lord might be inviting you to stretch your muscles in. Restorative rhythms are built one step at a time. Start where you are with a small goal, and trust Jesus to meet you in the process.