Do you think you are ready for anything? If you do then you are wrong. I was in constant contact with my disciples for three years and even then I said that I had more to teach them, but they could not bear it now. Have you ever encountered spiritual truth that was incomprehensible, and only understood it after you had walked through it with me? This is an ongoing process. When you are ready you will be able to understand the next lesson. It is helpful for you to see this so you can comprehend the big picture of growth. Only a fool thinks the process has been completed in him. Trust me to prepare you and reveal things when the time is right. 

Do you think of wilderness in a positive or negative way? Today it is seen as a place of beauty and solitude for recreation. In ancient times it was seen as a desolate place with no resources for life. Even today, most people who visit the wilderness do not live there. I had my own experience in the wilderness and it was not a vacation for me. It was a time of testing during which I fasted for 40 days. Yet this was part of my Father’s plan, for it was the Spirit that led me into the wilderness. If you follow me you will go through wilderness experiences of your own. Though they may seem like desolate places they can be positive experiences if you know I am leading you there. 

Do I seem far away from you? You take it as a settled matter of theology that I am omnipresent and with you always even if you are not aware of me. Does your world consist primarily of concrete, glass, steel, and plastic? These are not evil things, but perhaps your awareness of me would improve if you sought out opportunities to visit the world of trees and grass. There is truth that is more obvious during a walk in the woods. I can hear you wherever you speak. Do you hear me equally well in all places? If not then you should seek out the places where you hear me best and spend time there. 

Do you see yourself as being on a spiritual journey? This is the normal state for everyone who follows me. So on this journey you have the company of all your fellow believers, and finding fellow travelers on your way is pure delight. Yet there is another sense in which you must take this journey alone. That is that you can’t tag along on someone else’s journey of faith. I call you to follow me and not someone else. In like manner don’t expect anyone else to follow you. I have mapped out a path and rate for you that do not coincide exactly with the path for anyone else. Only you can fulfill the destiny I have set before you.