For your own good

 

Recently I watched a short documentary about a man who decided that he’d had enough; he quit his job, got rid of all his belongings and went into the wilderness, leaving family and friends behind.

Except for the occasional curious stranger, like the documentary maker, this man lived in complete isolation. So isolated was he, that he wasn’t aware of anything that was happening in the world, he did not even know the date and, as a consequence of that, had forgotten how old he was.

Why would anyone choose to live, all alone, isolated and cut off from everything and everyone, especially their loved ones? Yet some people do.

Mark chapter 1 introduces us to a man who chose to live in the wilderness. The wilderness was where his ministry took place.

His mission, from his conception, was to prepare people for the coming Messiah and his preaching emphasized the need for them to be spiritually ready for it.

In the wilderness John the baptizer began preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. People from the whole Judean countryside and all of Jerusalem were going out to him, and he was baptizing them in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins. John wore a garment made of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. – Mark 1:4-6 (NET)

And when the Messiah came, He too went to John to be baptised, then,

The Spirit immediately drove him into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, enduring temptations from Satan. He was with wild animals, and angels were ministering to his needs. – Mark 1:12-13 (NET)

The Holy Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness.

There are those who choose the wilderness of self-imposed isolation and there are those who are driven into a solitary place for their own good.

Have you ever been in that solitary place where the Spirit has taken you through a wilderness experience? Are you there now? If you have been or are in your wilderness season, understand that it is for your own good.

It’s definitely not for the fainthearted, as it is one of the most difficult parts of the spiritual journey and the temptation to quit is real and can be rather compelling.

Hold on, don’t give up and do not give in, understand that it is for your own good.

The Spirit is with you just as He was with Jesus in the wilderness.

It may feel the way Hosea 13:15 (NET) describes but this too shall pass, for it’s only a temporary affliction (see 2 Corinthians 4:17-18).

Even though he flourishes like a reed plant,
a scorching east wind will come,
a wind from the Lord rising up from the desert.
As a result, his spring will dry up;
his well will become dry.
That wind will spoil all his delightful foods
in the containers in his storehouse.

In the wilderness you will grow strong in the Lord (ref. Ephesians 6:10), as spiritual drought causes a thirst for the things of God (see Psalm 42:1 & 63:1).

Know that it is during the greatest seasons of drought that God’s rain, streams and fountains flow the most. God shows you His power in the wilderness.

For I will pour water on the parched ground and cause streams to flow on the dry land. – Isaiah 44:3 (NET)

In the wilderness, there is a source of spiritual water that quenches your thirst (see John 4:13-14).

Beloved, you do not have to fear your wilderness experience; once you’ve chosen to walk the spiritual path you will have to trek through the wilderness, it is par for the course, inevitable but always remember that it is for your own good.

Hear the word of God according to Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NET)…

My blessing is on those people who trust in me,
who put their confidence in me.
They will be like a tree planted near a stream
whose roots spread out toward the water.
It has nothing to fear when the heat comes.
Its leaves are always green.
It has no need to be concerned in a year of drought.
It does not stop bearing fruit.

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “For your own good” © 2026 November 13, 2026