Blooming in the Wilderness: Why New Identity Is Forged In the Barren Places
Joseph’s Coat by Logan Monet
There’s a season in life that feels like you're standing in the middle of nowhere, unsure of what to do, why you’re there, or what comes next. It's an uncomfortably quiet place where it seems like every question you ask is met with a heavy, ominous silence. You feel rooted in place, but not by choice. Some might call it a rut, others a waiting room. But if we are completely honest, it feels more like a wilderness.
Here’s what most people don’t understand about a wilderness season: it’s not a detour. It's part of the necessary path on your journey to reach your promised land. In your mind's eye, you have glimpsed the life you want to live: work that aligns with who you are, love that truly sees you and lasts, creativity that is appreciated and unstifled, and real freedom that's not just an aspirational fantasy. This vision that you have for your life aligns with that special something inside of you that screams, “I know that I am made for more than this.”
But before any real transformation can happen, there is a stripping-off process that is a crucial part of the journey towards the vision. In the barren places where you are cocooned from outside influences is where real change can happen.
The vision is only the beginning.
First comes the promise. Then comes the process.
The Wilderness Is Where You Grow Into the Vision
While we’d love to believe that once the dream is planted, the doors will open, and everything will somehow fall neatly into place, unfortunately, that's not how these things work. After the promise comes the wilderness season, a sacred tearing down of every part of your old identity that can’t go with you into your promised land. To take the land (and keep it) you must become a new person. Someone who is capable of stewarding this new version of yourself and your life. Before any real transformation can happen, there is a painful stripping-off process that is a necessary part of the journey towards your promised land.
In this season, everything destructive and unnecessary gets stripped away. Your plans, your crutches, your ego, and your timelines.
Every area of your life is stripped down until you are left with only the core of who you are, and the seeds of who you are meant to be.
This season isn’t punishment. It is preparation for who you are called to be.
New Identity Must Be Built Before the Promise Can Be Carried
You may be impatient to finally live the life that you’ve been dreaming about, but be honest—are you really ready to carry the vision?
The dream version of your life requires you to be a dream version of yourself. That means new values, new mindsets, new habits, and a deeper trust in yourself and your calling. In short, you will need a whole new character that is rooted in foundational truths instead of generational fears.
Your wilderness season will teach you:
To anchor yourself in your vision and not your circumstances
To trust your talent and creativity, even when you can’t see its immediate value
To develop discipline when motivation fades
To let go of what looked like success but wasn't aligned with who you were called to be
To release false identities assigned to you and old versions of yourself that no longer fit
This isn’t just about what you are building. It's about who you are becoming.
Habakkuk 2:2 states:
“Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, so that he who reads it may run.”
This verse isn’t just about planning. Its about preparing for the journey. It's about rooting yourself in the promise, even when everything around you doesn’t yet reflect it. We are called to write the vision down ahead of time, because we will need to refer back to it when our circumstances are so bafflingly problematic that we can’t help but doubt if our vision will ever come to fruition.
The wilderness will test your vision, your faith, and your character—and in doing so will prepare you to walk in your promised land.
Practical Ways to Navigate Your Wilderness Season
If you’re in a season that feels uncertain, confusing, or deeply uncomfortable, know this: you're not lost. You’re right on track, right where you need to be.
Here are a few strategies to walk out your wilderness season with confidence and peace:
Write down your promise.
Don’t let the vision fade. Record what you’ve glimpsed—no matter how vague or bold. This becomes your anchor that keeps you from being blown about by unfavorable circumstances.Detach your identity from your productivity.
In the wilderness, you may not always have tangible results to show. That doesn’t mean you’re not making progress. Growth is happening beneath the surface.Establish small rituals.
Whether it’s journaling each morning, prayer, a creative habit, or simply getting outside daily, these habits will help keep you rooted in your promise while your identity shifts.Reflect consistently.
Track what you’re learning, how you’re changing, and where clarity is beginning to take shape. Keep notes on your phone or, better yet, in a journal, to consistently track your growth. S,o in those moments of doubt when it feels like you are frozen in place, you can look back at your progress and recommit yourself to the vision.Resist the urge to rush.
It makes sense to want to walk out your beautiful life asap, but take your time and do things the right way because what you build in the wilderness will sustain you in your promised land. Don’t shortcut your own growth.
Your Identity Is Built in the Barren Places
The wilderness season is not a desert—it’s a cocoon. A sacred space where your new identity is being forged, one uncomfortable stretch at a time. You may not feel confident yet. You may not see how it’s all coming together. But trust this: when you finally step into your promise, you will be ready. Because in the wilderness, you will become the kind of person you need to be in order to carry your vision with wisdom, power, and grace.
The wilderness isn’t a waiting room. It’s where you train and grow into the person you were always meant to be.
The Vision Keeper Planning System
Need a guide for the in-between?
The Vision Keeper Workbook by Textile Reverie is more than a workbook —it’s a transformational tool to help you navigate the wilderness with intention. With guided reflection pages, goal-mapping exercises, and soulful structure, it’s designed for creatives, dreamers, and seekers in seasons of transition.
✨ Step into your becoming. Explore the Vision Keeper now.
