“My feelings do not dictate my destiny.” When I heard Alisa Keeton with Revelation Wellness speak this during a workout, it resonated with me. I’ve been on a search to figure out what God has in store for us during this season. The season I’m dubbing the WILDERNESS. I think wilderness is a great word for what’s happened in the last year. All you have to say is 2020, and people get it. They’re reminded of the hurt, the pain, and the insecurities from that horrible c-word the year 2020 brought us. Some people have made it through unscathed, while others have lost just about everything. The wilderness is hard to work your way through, and more than likely, you’re going to get lost along the way. That’s exactly what happened in 2020.

Isolation was my biggest hurdle to overcome. And I figured out really quickly that I cannot handle isolation. When I was told to stay home and keep to myself, it sent me into a downward spiral of losing all the control I thought I had: the ability to visit with friends and family; the overwhelming hardship of finding ways to motivate my young kids who had established a routine that no longer existed. You get it, the list could on. Bottom line, I lost control. But you soon realize that type of control was the enemy.

When it comes down to it, we never really had control and never will. God is always in control. We have His word as guidance, and when we fall short of seeking His word, we can at least rely on the knowledge that we do not have to have it all together or be in control at all. From the beginning of all creation, Genesis 2:18 tells us “The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.’” And He did! He never allowed us to be in isolation from the beginning of time! We were never meant to be alone. But when you find yourself alone in the wilderness at times, how do you find your way out?

God already answered that too: “Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.” The wilderness is just a faith test. He’s pushing us through a season just like He did with the Israelites those forty years. He wants us to rely on Him to give us the map out of the wilderness. We are never alone, God gave us each other and he gave us Himself. Once you ask Him into your heart, he gives us the gift of the Holy Spirit to live within us and help guide us so we’re never alone. We always have an advocate; we always have a friend in Him. “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

So when you’re feeling lost and isolated in this wilderness, do not let that dictate your destiny. You are needed in this world, and there is hope once you get through the wilderness. Sometimes we just need to be still for God to work so He can get us through it.

If you or someone you know needs help out of the wilderness, there is hope in Jesus, God promises that and God always keeps His promises, just like He did when He said he would make a helper suitable for man. Reach out to someone. Reach out to me. The map is already there, we just need to follow it. You do not need to do this alone.

Here’s to getting out of the wilderness together, Rachel Outen