The Wilderness Journey of Life - Apostle Peterson Onoja Abu

The Renewal Life Christian Center is a ministry led by Apostle Peterson O. Abun. They focus on revealing Christ through teachings and the power of Christ. They can be contacted for inquiries and counsel. The sermon discussed the wilderness journey of life and how God tests and trusts individuals. This journey is not demonic but a way for God to shape and develop individuals. It is important not to compare oneself to others and to trust in God's timing and plan. The Renewal Life Christian Center is an apostolic and teaching ministry that anchors on revealing Christ and Him crucified through expository teachings and the manifestations of the power of Christ. It is generally coordinated by Apostle Peterson O. Abun. For further inquiry and counsel, please contact us with these numbers. 234-802-671-9577 or 234-081-024-21675 or 234-807-599-6218 or WhatsApp us via this number. 234-802-671-9577 May you encounter God as you listen to this life-changing word. Our gracious Father, we thank you for a time like this. Thank you for your people always wanting to hear you. I so much appreciate you, Lord, for showing us a great mercy even at this very moment. And the message that you have prepared for us this evening is a message that you want to use to encourage as many of us that are going through discouragement in life, in our businesses, and even in the ministry. We are asking you, Lord, that you bless us mindfully by your word even at this moment in Jesus' name. Give us the grace to be able to comprehend everything you will be communicating to us and help us to become doers of the word and help us to find consolation and comfort even through the pages of your word. For in Jesus' mighty name I pray. Tonight we will be talking about a very interesting topic. But first of all, I want us to open our Bibles to the book of Exodus chapter 16, verse 1 to verse 5. Exodus chapter 16, verse 1 to verse 5. Exodus chapter 16, I read from verse 1. And they took their journey from Elin, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came into the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elin and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month, after their departing out of the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And the children of Israel said unto them, Woe to God we are died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full. For ye have brought us forth into the wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger. Then said the Lord unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a certain weight every day, that I may prove them whether they will walk in my law or not. Verse 5. And it shall come to pass that on the sixth day, they shall prepare that which they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather. Where we read, I want us to first of all pause, don't rush, we are not going to rush the teaching. But I want us to do some comparison now. Here we discover that these are people, if you read chapter 15, you will see how they were pouring praises to God. This was after they crossed the Red Sea. And they began to sing to the Lord. They began to appreciate God. They began to give glory to God. And you would think that they would never again turn against God. You would think that they would never again speak against God or murmur against God. Remember that before they entered, before they crossed the Red Sea, initially they were murmuring to Moses. They said, Moses, so there is no grave again in Egypt. You have therefore brought us to the Red Sea that we may perish. They were murmuring to Moses. And at the time God intervened, God told Moses to use what was with him. And then God did a miracle. Now you discover that after they passed through the Red Sea, there was praises. There was what? Dances. These people were dancing. These people were praising God, appreciating God. But after a short time, we are discovering here that because there was no food, they were murmuring. If you go to chapter 15, the later part of that chapter, you will see that they even murmured when there was no water. So we are going to talk about an interesting topic. It is very interesting because some of us are going through a questionable period of life. And then we are asking God and questioning God that has God forsaken us? You are going to find that here. Exodus 17 verse 1 to 3. And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of sin after their journeys according to the commandment of the Lord, and preached in raphidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. A journey that God licensed. A journey that God was with them. A journey that God was backing them up. A journey that God himself has told them to embark on. We expect the journey to be full of provision. We expect the journey to be full of prosperity. But why is there no water? There was no food. Now there is no water. Verse 2. Wherefore the people did shite with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why shite ye with me? Wherefore, do ye tempt the Lord? And the people tested them for water. And the people murmured against Moses, and said, Wherefore, is this that thou hast brought us out of the Egypt to kill us and our children and our cattle with taste? You see the allegation. You see the false accusation. Now, we'll be talking about a topic, the wilderness journey of life. The wilderness journey of life. It is important we talk about this because if you don't know God in this dimension, you will think that it was never God that asked you to start that business. You will start thinking that probably it was never God that asked you to start that ministry. Because God has called you into a ministry, it doesn't mean that you will not go through the wilderness period. You will not go through the wilderness journey of life. It doesn't mean that God has given you a promise or has instructed you to start a business. It doesn't mean that you won't go through a wilderness section. You must understand that God will first test you before he will trust you. God doesn't just trust men because they love him. You can profess your love towards God. You may sing a song and say, God, I love you. I love you, Lord. I love you, Lord. Yes, I love you, Lord. You are God. These are songs of appreciation, adoration. These are songs of our profession towards him. We try to communicate to him that we truly love him. But you see, before God would trust us, the love of God is a generic favor of God towards all men. God loves every man the same. The way God loves Moses is the same way God loves you. But when it comes to trust, God doesn't trust all men. He trusts only men he has tested. He trusts only men that have gone through the school of the wilderness and they successfully graduated from that school. He trusts men that he has dealt with with time and they passed through the test. See, so when we talk about the trust of God, it is not something you earn by prayer and fasting. No matter how you pray, no matter how you fast, it doesn't make God to just trust you. The trusting of God comes with time. God dealing with you. The trusting of God comes with God testing your patience. God will start testing your patience. He will start delaying things around you to test your patience. To test your patience. He will start making things not to be pleasant with you to test your patience. Unfortunately, in this period of testing, that is where many ministers of God eventually close down their ministry. One of the greatest mistakes you will make is to compare yourself, compare your calling, compare your business, compare your ministry with that of the other person. Even if both of you are very close friends, your calling and dealings will be different. So if you don't want to be frustrated in ministry, if you don't want to be frustrated in life, if you don't want to be frustrated in that career that God has called you for, if you don't want to be frustrated in that business that God has called you for, then you must understand this. That if you must be successful in that thing, you must focus on God towards you. You must focus on your own book, your own timeline, your own dealings. And never you try to compare yourself. The Bible says they that compare themselves with themselves are not wise. Now there are some facts you need to understand about the wilderness journey. Even as we talk about this journey, there are some facts you need to know about this wilderness journey. Number one, it is not a demonic journey. The wilderness journey is not demonic journey. Because when you are journeying through the wilderness, sometimes you will be thinking that maybe what you are going through is demonic. You will be thinking that maybe what you are going through is demonic. I'm telling you the truth. The wilderness journey is not a demonic journey. Although many times you will be thinking that maybe there is a demon. At this time of you going through the wilderness journey, a lot of people will come and say maybe it is your foundation that is fighting against you. Some of them will come and say maybe it is the ancestral power of your family fighting against you. Because many a times during the wilderness journey, there won't be food, there won't be water. What is the meaning of food and water? We are talking about source of living, provision. There may not even be a job. You may apply for a different job and yet you have not been taken. Yet you are qualified. You may do different businesses and nothing is working well. You go into ministry, you are laboring, you are struggling. Instantly people are leaving you. So the wilderness period is a period that if you are not careful, you begin to connect yourself with generational cause. You will start saying that probably it is the idol of my father's house that is combating against me. Until you have the spirit of discernment, to know if you are in the wilderness journey, you will begin to feel that you are under a cause. So one thing you must understand is that the wilderness journey is not a demonic journey. It is a journey that God himself has assigned for your life in order for him to produce the reality of the man he wants you to become. So there is a kind of man, there is a kind of woman that is fit for that calling he has called you for. Are you with me? The version of you now cannot be able to carry that vision he had shown you many years ago. Maybe God has given you a vision that you are going to be a very great man of God, you know, taking over nations. The version you are now cannot carry that vision. So God has to train you, prepare you and develop you into the original content and version that needed to carry that vision. So you must understand that God prepares men for the vision he has shown them. The version that you are cannot carry what he has shown you about that business. Maybe God has given you a vision that the business you are about to go into is going to bless the business, prosper the business. There is a level of mindset, there is a maturity you need to develop in your mind in order for you to carry that business. So God orchestrates the wilderness journey for a period of preparation so that you can be able to enter, so that you can be able to fit in towards that vision he has given to you. So the wilderness journey is not a demonic journey. It is a journey of preparation. It is a journey of configuration. It is a journey of testing. It is a journey of groaning. It is a journey of searching. And it is a journey of remaking. He said, I will make you disciples. I will make you fishers of men. He said, follow me and I will make you. And he used three and a half years for them. He used three and a half years for them to make them fishers of men. In those three and a half years, you saw them. They were walking up and down. They were sleeping in the garden of Gethsemane. They had no accommodation. They were just moving from city to city. You know, going up and down. It was a period of pain. A time came, even Peter had to ask Jesus. He said, we have left, oh I follow you. What will be our reward? It means that these people, they totally left everything. They eventually left everything. It was a three year period of their training. It was a period of preparation. A period of configuration for the task that Jesus had prepared for them after his departure. So when Jesus died, it was not too big for them. It was not too difficult for them to fit in. They have already been trained. They have already understood the place of dealing. That is why, beside Judah and Scarlet, every one of them paid with their blood. They sealed their testimonies with their blood. Because Jesus taught them the way of discipleship. He taught them the hard way of discipleship. He taught them the hard way of discipleship. The wilderness journey. The wilderness journey is a journey that is not demonic. I am emphasizing this because most of you are in that journey. And then you are beginning to catch a winch. Say, maybe it is a winch in my father's compound. Maybe it is a demon in my mother's compound. Maybe it is a demon in my father's compound. Maybe it is a demon. Forget about that. If God is interested in you, you must go through that journey. Get this clear. If God is interested in you, it is a journey you will never, you will never escape. He has to prepare you. He has to train you. He has to take you through the school of the Spirit. Understand this. You have to understand this. So, the wilderness journey or the wilderness journey of life. The wilderness journey or the wilderness journey of life. Is a period of life that you experience these four things. The wilderness journey or the wilderness journey of life. Is the period of life that you will experience these three things. Number one, you will experience rejection. Rejection, you will experience it. You will be rejected by men. You may be rejected by your family members. So, it is a period of rejection. A lot of people will reject you. In case you are the type that always, you know, you have a very, a psychology that everybody around you must love you. When God puts you into this period, one of the first things you are going to experience is rejection. You will be rejected by men. You may even be rejected by men you once helped. Men you once assisted in life. But rejection is one of the things you will experience. During the period of wilderness, you will experience rejection. Not rejected by God, but rejected by men. You will experience rejection. Jesus went through the wilderness journey. Even before Jesus, the Bible says, and God as highly exalted him. And giving him a name that at the making mentioned of the name of Jesus. Every nation bowed before that glory came. Before the glorification, there was crucifixion. So, when Jesus was going through the wilderness journey, Even all the disciples, not that they rejected him, they left him. They forsook him. They left him alone. Even the father in heaven forsook Jesus. Jesus said, why has that forsaken me? The father forsook him. Because it's the period of the wilderness. The wilderness journey. So, one of the things you experience in the wilderness journey is rejection. Rejection, rejection, rejection. You experience rejection in the wilderness journey. It is something you can't escape. You'll be rejected. You'll be rejected. Number two, you experience famine. Famine, I'm talking about lack. Lack, you start experiencing lack. Lack is one of the things, one of the things you experience during the wilderness journey. There won't be food. There will be time that you'll be lack. It may even come to a point where it is difficult for you to eat three square meals. It may even come to the point where you can't feed yourself, feed your family. Things will become so difficult. That is number two. Number three, you will experience hardship. You won't easily gain breakthrough. Anything you are trying to do, it will be difficult for you to access. It will be difficult for you to access breakthrough. For you to access, you know, promotion. Things will become difficult. It's as if every door around you is locking. Every door is locked. Anywhere you try to put effort, suddenly that place will just lock. It's a period of hardship. The ground will not be easy for you. You're going to a ministry. It will become difficult for you to gather members. Everyone you invite to your church, we see they have a church to go. And everybody starts forsaking you. Even the key people around you start leaving you. Things will start getting locked down. You start asking, what is the problem? Everything is just shutting down. Everything is shutting down. Things are just shutting down. Business is shutting down. The wilderness journey. Then about four, you will experience abandoning. You'll be abandoned by men. You know, when you are abandoned, that is when we talk about the place of loneliness. You become lonely. Nobody wants to associate with you. Nobody wants to come close to you. Nobody wants to call you. Nobody wants to hear from you. Nobody wants to do anything with you. Everybody will abandon you and leave you to yourself. It is a wilderness journey. It is a period of loneliness. You'll be crying night and day. Asking God, Lord, Lord, why am I going through this? Family members will even forsake you. You'll be tempted to just switch off your phone and just remain there for years. Because you'll be abandoned. Nobody wants to hear your cry. Nobody wants to show concern. Everybody just focuses on their... See, God will be so intentional because He's trying to know your heart. He's trying to know your heart. In that period of abandonment, what God will be communicating to you is that you should love those that abandoned you. That is when God will be telling you to shake off on those that never shake off on you. That is when God will be telling you to visit those that have rejected you. That is when God will be telling you to love your enemies and pray for those that despitefully use you. God will be telling you to bless those that curse you. Bless and curse not. At this period, God will be telling you to feed the needy. You are in the period of famine. There is no food for you to eat. Yet God is telling you that the money with you, you should use it to feed the needy. Feed the needy. Feed the needy. Feed the needy with the little that you have. With the little with you, God will be asking for that little. He'll be asking you to give up the little that is with you. He'll be asking you, the wilderness journey, to give up the little that is with you. The wilderness journey of life, it is a period allowed by God for a purpose. God allowed this period for three reasons. Number one, God wants you to know your weaknesses. So in the period of wilderness journey, you'll begin to know your weaknesses. You'll begin to know that you have a temper. You'll begin to know that you don't really love your neighbor because when they pay you evil, you want to pay them back with evil. So therefore, you'll begin to see your weaknesses that you don't have the nature of Christ. So you'll begin to see your weaknesses in the time of the wilderness journey. Number two, you'll begin to know your true character. You'll begin to know the true character of people around you. You don't know those that are around you. You think they love you. It's because things are still good for you. It is because things are still going well for you. When God brings you into the wilderness period of dealings, you'll begin to know that those around you don't even believe in your calling. You'll begin to know that those around you don't even trust you. You'll begin to know that those around you don't even love you. I am speaking from experience. You'll begin to know that those around you don't have the same concern for you. The reason that still, you know, a man of God, you are a man of God. Listen to me. The reason that still calling upon you is because you still have anointing. The day God will thrive your heart and any of them you pray for, nothing will happen. And that will continue for like a year. You will discover that they will come up with a new idea that you are not even anointed. You will see them begin to run after other men of God. And God will allow that to happen so that you will know the true condition of the heart of the people. It is because as a man of God, you still have money to give to them. Whenever they come with their needs, you give them assistance. When there is no money, God will begin to see. See, they will begin to call other men their father in the Lord. They will begin to call other men their pastor. And you that went through the night of prayer with them, they will never remember you. See, God will begin to reveal the heart of men towards you, about you. God will begin to reveal their heart, the condition of their heart about you. You will begin to know that men, men, even Jesus, the Bible says that Jesus didn't commit himself into the hands of men for he knows what was in the heart of man. He didn't commit himself into the hands of the men of those days because he knew what was in their hearts. You don't know the hearts of people around you until God permits you to go through the wilderness. You will begin to know that people don't love you. They only love the gift of God upon your life. You will begin to know that people don't love you. They only love the business. They love your money. They don't love you. The wilderness journey. Number three. One of the reasons God allowed this is for you to be able to learn the activities of the devil. The activities. You can't understand it. You can't fight the enemies. You can't fight the devil until God himself has allowed you to be able to know the activities of the enemies. It is in the wilderness journey you begin to understand the tactics on how the devil fights. In the wilderness journey you begin to. Because a lot of attacks will start coming. Attacks will start coming. Attacks will start coming. You will start praying the night, praying the day. In fact, most of the times it is in the wilderness journey you become prayerful. Your prayer life is built in the period of the wilderness journey. Your prayer life is built in the period of the wilderness journey. Always know that everyone must go through this period. If God is interested in you, you will go through this period. You can't do anything about it. So, you will begin to understand that the act of men is wicked. The act of men is deceitful and desperately wicked. The wilderness journey. But we thank God Almighty for permitting such journey. Like I said, this journey will make you to discover your weaknesses. This journey will make you to know the true character of the people around you. If not, you will easily be deceived. This journey will make you to know the activities of the devil. This period will make you to know the activities of the devil. Always know that every person must go through this journey. If God is interested in you, it is part of the curriculum of God for your life. It is not something you will be able to escape. The wilderness journey. My prayer for us is that God will give us grace to go through it in Jesus' name. We will not get tired. We will not give up. We will not back out. The wilderness journey. To where we are studying now, we are seeing that the people that were praising God, that were thanking God, dancing to God, eventually became murmurers. Eventually became murmurers. Eventually became complainers. The wilderness journey. Now, what are the experiences during this season? What are the things you are going to experience during this season? The experiences during this season of the wilderness journey. The wilderness journey of life. Number one is rejection and avoidance. There will be rejection. There will be avoidance. People will begin to reject you. People will begin to avoid you. It's a period where you won't be able to explain why people just suddenly give you a chance, avoid you, and then stay far away from you. It might even be from members of your family. From the church where you are attending. The church you are attending. It can be from even men of God towards you. You will just observe that a sudden withdrawal. You will be left to yourself. The period of the wilderness is a period of rejection. It's a period of avoidance. It's a period where you are left to yourself. It's a period where people will not believe you. So, therefore, they leave you. Let me say this. Irrespective of the area that God has called you into, you might be called into the business world. When you start facing these challenges in the business, you will discover that those that were singing your name, singing your songs, will suddenly run away from you. Everyone will just abandon you and leave you to yourself. It is because you just started the business, and the business is still eating fruits. A time will come when God is interested in you because He wants to expose the heart of the people around you. He will allow that business to hit the rock bottom. Not to destroy the business, but to shake the business to a point whereby it will appear as though the business is closing down. And God will begin to reveal to you the condition of the heart of the people around you. So, these are the experiences during the wilderness journey of life. In this season, you are going to experience rejection and avoidance. Number two, you are going to experience denial. I have said that before. That when Jesus was at Gethsemane, where the Roman soldiers came for Jesus Christ, the Bible says that the disciples scattered. They left Jesus. Even Peter denied Jesus. He denied of ever knowing Jesus. It was part of Jesus' wilderness journey. Remember that these were people that were singing the praises of Jesus. Read from the book of Matthew chapter 5. The Bible always talks about, and a great multitude followed Him. But on His journey, on His way to the cross, we never saw a great multitude following Him. He was left to Himself. Even the disciples pursued Him. Even the disciples left Him. You will experience denial in the period of the wilderness journey. And the reason this teaching is coming is to prepare your mind so that you will not see God as a wicked God. One of the reasons God permitted this season, like I keep emphasizing the reasons, so that you will not think that God is a wicked God, is for you to discover your weaknesses. For you to discover your frailties. For you to see how impotent you are without God. For you to see how weak you are without God. Without God. Number two is for you to discover the true character and the heart condition of the people around you. God permits this for you to experience the true character and the heart condition of the people around you. Number three is for you to learn the activities of the devils. To know the operational functions of the devils. How they must function. How do they operate. Because in this period, in this season, your spiritual life, your prayer life is built. Most of us develop our prayer life in this season. Because it is a time when you have no hope. You will never put your confidence in man. It is a time when you withdraw your confidence from men and you shun them to God. So because you just have God alone as your only source of survival, you start praying without ceasing. The reason you are not praying is because you have not yet entered the season of hopelessness. Hopelessness before men, not before God. But when God brings you into that season, you will discover that every man will abandon you. So you will discover that number two thing you are going to experience is denial. Jesus was denied by Peter. The number two man in our present time will call Peter to be the PA of Jesus, personal assistant of Jesus. And yet he forsook Jesus. The one that was with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration and saw the glory, yet he forsook Jesus. You see people may have been with you. People might have even seen you raising the dead, praying for the sick and they experiencing miracles, yet they will still forsook you. In case you think that by you being anointed, you capture the heart of people around you, let me say this to you, the closer they are to you, the more dangerous it is for them to easily forsook you. If the one that doesn't even know you, like Simon the Syringe, can still accompany to carry the cross to Calvary, than even Peter that was closer to Jesus, most people that betray men of God happen to be the closest to the men of God. Most people that betray business owners happen to be the closest to the business owner. In fact, family members have betrayed their brothers who owned that business. Because that business was eventually, you know, because you want to please your family, you carry family members into the business, and they eventually squander the business, destroy the business, and eventually they forsake you. And they leave. And they leave. It's a period of denial. Number three, what you are going to experience, you are going to experience jealousy and envy from those around you. The period of wilderness, when you are going through the wilderness journey of life, you are going to experience jealousy and envy from those around you. Jealousy and envy from those around you. Number four, you are going to experience false accusation and lies. False accusation and lies. People will suddenly begin to rise up to bear witness. False witness against you. False testimony against you. Most of these men of God that are servants of God in the sight of God, we are hearing stories about them. I'm not talking about the ones that are, you know, not aligned with God. There is no man of God that will escape, that has come to the limelight, and doing the will of God that will ever escape the place of false accusation. It may be part of the wilderness journey. Most especially ministers that have not yet risen up. In those small localities, people will begin to cook up stories against you. The period of wilderness journey. People will begin to bear witness against your business. Bear witness against your career in your place of business, in your place of work. Some of your staff, some of your colleagues in the place of your work. They will begin to gang up against you. The period of wilderness. There will be false accusation and lies. And number five, what you are going to experience again, you are going to experience, sometimes you experience delayed to answer prayers. Delayed to answer prayers. You will pray many prayers, and it will appear the more you pray, the less you see results. You might even call it the period of silence. You might even describe the wilderness period to be the period of silence. It's a period where you will start thinking as though God has forsaken you. Because you pray here, there's no open vision. Everything just looks toughy. The wilderness journey. It's a period where God intentionally will delay your answer prayers. To check your intention. To examine your motive. You see God is very interested in your motive. God is more interested in your acts. God is more interested in your intention than even the answer prayers. So God wants to check up to know why are you asking for that thing. So you might start experiencing delayed to answer prayers. Number six, you will start experiencing mocking from those you love. Those you love will begin to mock you. Those you love. When you start going through the wilderness journey, those you love will begin to mock you. Will begin to mock you. Will begin to mock you. They will begin to mock the answer of God in your life. They will begin to mock the answer of God in your life. They will begin to mock the power of God manifesting through you. They will begin to mock the power of God manifesting through you. Number seven. There will be a form of stagnation. Now what I'm sharing with you is some of the things that make us to pray unnecessary prayers. You see when God is dealing with you, when you are in your wilderness journey, there will be stagnation sometimes. Because the pillar of fire can decide to stay in a place for a month, for two months. You are not moving, you are not going back, you just remain in one spot. But you are still in the wilderness. While you are in the wilderness, there will still be pillar of fire. There will still be pillar of fire. In fact, it can even be the pillar you will pray and the sick will be healed. Yes, you yourself you are sick. The wilderness journey. It will appear as if nothing is working. But in that journey, you must keep trusting God. In that journey, you must keep hoping, looking up to God. You must keep building your faith. The wilderness journey is God's own examination. And test before your promotion. I repeat, the wilderness journey is God's own examination. And test allowed by God before your promotion. So when you read the scripture, you discover that the children of Israel were going through the wilderness towards a promotion. Towards a promised land. There was a promised land awaiting them at the end of the journey. But between the promised land and Egypt, there was a wilderness. So understand that every time you are going through the wilderness journey, the end of it is always glorification. Look at Jesus. If you read the book of... Let us turn our Bibles to the book of Philippians chapter 2. The Bible says from verse 5, okay? Let me read from verse 6. Who be in the form of God, taught it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. And being found in the fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Now let us read verse 7 again. But made of himself no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. Understand that statement, the likeness of men. That means every pain that Jesus felt on his way to Calvary, while he was carrying the cross, it is a human form of pain. So there was no divine strength that enabled him not to bear the pain, not to feel the pain. Because some people might be saying that it was because he was God. That was why he was able to endure. At that point he was man. So he carried it with the energy of man, not the energy of angel, not the energy of divinity. He carried the cross. He felt the pain with the energy of man. He was made in the likeness of men. Verse 8. And being found in the fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Now, understand this. That the motivation that backed up the sacrifice or the endurance of Jesus to Calvary is that he saw beyond the earth. He saw the glory waiting for him in heaven. So he endured the pain because he had gotten a revelation of what was waiting for him. And for this purpose, God has highly exalted him. And giving him a name, he saw the exaltation. So you must understand this, that what keeps you, what keeps you with God, even in the wilderness journey, is the revelation of the things God has promised to do at the end of the journey. You will never go through the wilderness journey and think you remain the same. Let me tell you the truth. I know you are looking for relevance by association. I know you want men of God that God has blessed and raised up, you know, so you want to snap photos with them. You want to be in the same pictures with them. You want to, you know, snap photos with them and come on social media to post it that you have a connection with a man. And that is what you are looking in order for you to come to limelight. But you will not have the ability, you will not have the grace to sustain that position because you have not been trained for it. But when you are going through the wilderness journey, there is a glorification that awaits you, not only on earth but also in heaven. So while going through the wilderness journey, we must maintain a pure life. So before we wind up tonight, I'll be sharing with you, I'll be talking about the attitude to put on during this season. It's a very crucial thing. Unless you miss it, what attitude, what are the attitudes, what are the characteristics you should put on? While you are in the wilderness journey, what are the characteristics you should put on? When it appears as if all hope is gone, what should you put on? What characteristics, what attitudes should you put on? Number one, you must maintain a consistent and fervent prayer life. In the days of your wilderness journey, pray without ceasing. Pray more, pray much, pray always. Pray without ceasing because it's a day of temptation also. Prayer keeps you going. Prayer will produce endurance within. Prayer strengthens the inner man. If you are prayerful in this season, you will enjoy this season with God. Prayer hastens it. It makes you to quickly go through it. It hastens it. It makes your time to come. It can hasten your time to come. Your time of manifestation. Prayer. You must keep a consistent, fervent prayer life. Pray without ceasing. Pray in the night, pray in the day. Let it be a time of much praying. Don't use it to sleep. Don't use it to murmur. Don't use it to be complaining. Spend time with God in the place of prayer. Spend quality time in the place of prayer. Spend quality time in the place of prayer. Spend quality time in the place of prayer. Number two, spend quality time with the world. Spend quality time with the world. Make sure you feed on the world. Make sure you eat the world. Make sure you are devouring the world. Make sure you are devouring the world. It's not a time for you to keep the world behind and say, Well, I have no energy. I have no interest to read the Bible. It's a time for you to digest the world. Read this world. Let this world, the world, the word of God, the book of the Lord never depart from thy mouth. But thou shalt meditate therein day and night. If you want to obtain good sources in life, if you want to obtain good sources in ministry, if you want to obtain good sources in business, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. Eat the world. Eat the world. Meditate on the world. Spend time with the world. Feed on the world. Feed, feed on the world. Get messages from seasoned ministers of God that talk about faith. Eat messages that grows faith. Let it be a period that your faith is grown. You keep growing the faith with messages. Eat the world. Number three, it's a time of temptation. Remember I said to you that it's a time when you begin to know the condition of the heart of the people around you. So what should be your attitude toward them? Keep doing good. No retaliation. Keep doing good. No retaliation. It's a time where people will turn their back at you. It's a time where people will forsake you. They will deny you. They will reject you. They will avoid you. So don't say, oh, is it because I'm in my wilderness journey? Is it because of it? Therefore, I'm going to pay tooth for tooth. I know. It's a time you keep doing good. They stop calling you, call them. They stop shaking up on you, call to shake up on them. They are forsaking you whenever you see them. Don't forsake them. Still celebrate them. Still greet them. Understand that God is testing your heart at that time to know if there is any wickedness in it. God is testing your heart to know if your heart is still wicked. If God is going to use you, you must develop a heart that easily forgives if God will use you. If God will use you, a heart that easily forgives is the remedy, is the demand. Number four, which is the last of it all, is you must keep trusting God in that season. Let your faith be towards the Lord. Whenever you trust men, men will disappoint you. So keep trusting God. Keep trusting God. For the people of Israel, they should have spent 40 days in the wilderness. They ended up spending 40 years in the wilderness. Remember that even before the nation went through the wilderness journey, Moses went through the wilderness journey. When he was about to come out before time, when he was at the age of 40, he killed an Egyptian. He tried to rush out before time. The calling of God had been upon him. Even from birth, the calling has been upon him. From when he was young. But he tried to rush out. Just the way there are many rushing out. They don't want to go through the wilderness. So when they rush out like this, they look for association by relevance. They begin to look for people to associate with. Renowned people to associate with. So that they can quickly make a name. They don't want to go through the wilderness. They don't want to go. And that is why you see many of them, they have not yet conquered the spirit of lust. They have not yet conquered the spirit of fornication. They have not yet conquered the spirit of pride. They have not yet conquered the spirit of anger. So they quickly come up like Moses. They jump up like Moses. And they look for who to associate with. And they look for the Iranian ministers. And snap a photo with the Iranian ministers. They create a Facebook page and they promote the page. They come to limelight. And suddenly you will discover that just a small damsel, a little damsel, who just comes close to them, the news will come out that they fell into fornication. They have been sleeping with women all along. Because why? They jump roses. In the period of the wilderness journey, God will begin to grow new. He will begin to bring out those nations. Those nations that have the tenacity. Those nations that have the tendency to kill you. To kill your ministry. To kill your calling. So because you want to escape it. Because you don't want to submit to leadership. Because you don't want to submit to spiritual discipline. You don't want to submit to authority. You don't want to submit. You don't want to be accountable to a leader. You quickly jump up and say, God has called me. And you rush up and that becomes the end about you. Understand this. You can't jump the process. You can't. So Moses, while he was 40 years. He tried to use his power. Use his strength. To fight for the Hebrews. And then he killed an Egyptian. But thank God he ran away. That was the only way God could treat that sickness. Because he thought he could do it without God at that time. Remember at that time it was only with the voice of God. In our time we would say that time he was not yet mature. And then when he went to the backside of the desert. He spent another 14 years there. Inside the wilderness. In the desert. Back of the desert. That was where he was training animals. You know when you are training animals like all these goats. If you are not patient you are going to kill goats. You will be killing all your animals. So right there God allowed him to train stubborn animals. And from him shepherding stubborn animals. His own nature. His own weaknesses. His own. That nature in him. That made him independent of God. Began to find expression. And Moses began to show his weakness. He saw his weaknesses. And from there God began to work on him. God began to mold him. So if he could be here with animals. He can be here with humans. And after he passed the course 40 years later. When he was now 80 years God appeared. At the backside of the desert. At the bonny bush. And God said Moses, Moses. Now when God was asking him to go back to Egypt. You know what Moses said? Moses said he was not qualified. In fact he began to find reasons. Why God should not allow him to go. So there was no chance for him to think that. I can kill them with my power again. He began to see his frailties. He began to see his weaknesses. He began to see his own qualification. Any man God used. Never see themselves as somebody before God. You know when God has finished breaking you. Even when God has asked you. Even when he eventually call you to do a thing. You will see yourself not worthy to do that thing. The reason you can quickly jump up. Even before God will send you. You run. Is because he has not finished breaking you. When he finishes breaking you. Even when he wakes you to do a thing. You will be scared. You will be doing it with fear and trembling. Because you know. That it is only by grace. Only by grace. Did you see that Moses killed anybody again? Some of the Egyptians followed them. We call them mixed multitude. In case you are asking. But the Egyptians did not go with them. To the wilderness. While they crossed the river. The Bible says they were what? Mixed multitudes. They followed the Israelites. But Moses never killed anybody again. You never saw Moses striking down an Egyptian. Or any of the mixed multitude that went with them. God succeeded to break that nation. Do not jump the wilderness journey of life. It may not be easy. But do not jump it. It is to your advantage. It is to your advantage. That is where God works on your heart. That is where God deals with your heart. The condition of your heart. God will make you to become willing and aligning to his will. The wilderness journey. So when Moses was ripe. When he became qualified. Then God visited him. What about the person of David? David is another example. After he killed Goliath. You would think that David at that point was ready. But he had to spend another year. He spent years. David became 40 years before he ascended the throne. Although 13 years back he was qualified to be the king of Israel. But when he became 40 years. That was when he became king over Israel. He was first of all king over Judah. Before he became king over the whole of Israel. God allowed Moses. David. To keep running in the wilderness. Saul was chasing David. So he kept running in the wilderness. And inside the wilderness God brought a test. There was opportunity for him to kill Saul. But what did David say? He said. Touch not what? The anointed. He passed the test. Even in the wilderness there was a test. And then when he finished the test. God said. David. Is a man. So the man after God's heart. Is not just a title. It was a condition of David's heart. When God said. David was a man after my heart. God was saying that David has a heart. Like my heart. Go and read the book of Psalms. You will see David. David. How he was seeking God. You will see his prayer points. You will know that David's prayer point. Is all about intimacy with God. The wilderness journey. May we. Not. Rush out before time. Submit. When you are submitted as a man of God. You may be a young brother. You are sensitive calling of God upon your life. Don't jump out. Look for a man. You may have anybody you are submitting to. That your pastor. You might say your pastor. Is like an illiterate pastor. He didn't go to school. In fact. He can't even speak a good English. And you say. That is a way to you. You are following a pastor on one social media. That you know. That both of you have ever spoken. You are only just watching his video. He doesn't know you. You don't know him. Both of you don't have each other's contact. And you say. That is my father in the Lord. You are fooling yourself. Go back and submit. In that place. In that local church. In that wooden church. That is where God wants to prepare you. That is where God wants to train you. That is where God wants to try your heart. Go back there. Go and submit. Don't rush at before time. Go and submit. There is a blessing attached. Don't be fool of yourself. You won't be useful to God. Go and submit. Don't look for who you just want. Look for whom God has led you to. Go and submit. Don't jump at. In that church where you are serving. It may even be that the minister of God is a very young man of God. That doesn't even know much. And you yourself. You are experiencing ministry. Submit. If he didn't give you message to preach. Sit down. Carry your pen and your jotter. Jot down his message. When he is preaching. Be jotting down. Don't say. Who am I to jot down this message of this man. My sister. Sit down and jot down. My brother. Sit down. Carry your book and your pen. And jot something down. Learn. Learn. It is part of the test. There is an invisible eyes watching you. Watching the condition of your heart. If God will send you. He must first test you. You know the calling of God comes from a lot of people. Many are called. But few are choosing. You know why? It is only the few that pass through the test. That are choosing to ascend. So you can be called without ascending. So it is not the day you are called. That is not the day you are sent. God will test you. So I believe this message is blessing someone already. I believe it is answering the heart question. Your heart searching question. The answer I have already given to some of you. So you must understand that the wilderness journey of life is not a demonic journey. It is not an evil. It is not foundation. It doesn't mean you are under foundational cause. It is God permitting it for the purpose of your development. For the purpose of you discovering your weakness. Or your weaknesses. Shall we go to the Lord in prayers? Let us begin to talk to the Lord. I say, Father you have spoken to me. Your word has come to me as two edged sword. Help me, oh God. Help me, oh God. Open your mouth and begin to pray. Amen.