Maybe. just like me, you've heeded the call of greatness. to the call.  Maybe you too have always known that you were destined for something great. Pehaps you are ready, willing, and able to serve but every time you put yourself out there you are side swiped by failure, knocked down with discouragement and gradually overcome with despair. You start out on the journey to the land of plenty and ultimately every time end up in the wilderness. You feel like you will never be able to break through this vicious cycle.  Well, let me offer you these words of encouragement.  Don’t despair, for I  truly believe that when you are a part of something great you will most likely experience the wilderness.

 The dictionary defines wilderness as "the most intact, undisturbed wild natural areas left on the planet." It goes on to say that the word wilderness is derived from the notion of wildness- in other words that which is not controllable by humans. When I read this I had to smile to myself. If you have ever been in the wilderness physically, spiritually, emotionally or even financially then you may be chuckling a little yourself right now because you can identify with your own “human wilderness experience.”  What I appreciate most were the words “intact-most undisturbed wild natural areas“. Could this possibly be what the wilderness experience is all about?  The call of the wild: a call to the most intact, undisturbed wild natural (authentic) life of your dreams.

What I would like to suggest to you right now is that there is tremendous value in the wilderness. If you find yourself wandering around in the wilderness, discouraged, despairing, or even depressed, hang on - your breakthrough is coming.  Your coming out party!  DO NOT QUIT!  Your Greatness awaits you.  What I would like to suggest to you right now is that there is tremendous value in the wilderness.  When everything you have ever known to be true or real has been shaken up and beaten up, turned upside down and inside out, it makes you ready to move outside your comfort zone toward something new.  More than likely you are experiencing a "devine setup."  The Universe is setting you up to grow, not fail, setting you up to excavate your true, authentic nature.

Are You in the Wilderness?

Here are some key points that will help you identify the wilderness:

 1.  You never saw it coming. Your were just cruising along pursuing life, your goals, and your dreams.  Everything seems as if it was going your way and then you were thrust into unprepared circumstances that knocked the wind out of your sails- you were thrust into an “absolute circumstantial contrast.”  The wilderness is often all about contrast and it can feel like “Spiritual Whiplash”.

2. You are wandering around what used to be the land of plenty (or even the land of just enough) but now it looks and feels like a barren waste land.  You feel you have lost your way.  Everything you once knew, along with your confidence in that knowledge, now feels completely out of reach. Even worse, you look around at others who are living “the dream,” and you can’t help but wonder “Why is this happening to me?” This I call “Wilderness Mentality.“

3. You may feel confused, disconnected, abandoned, rejected and ashamed.

Self doubt clouds your confidence; you start to question everything in your life.  It seems as if your well has gone completely dry.  All of your sources of inspiration have vanished like mere vapors. The separation that you feel from your dream, from your vision, is crippling.  Your confidence in life and in yourself has been completely shaken. .

4. You contemplate giving up, full of self pity along with that  "why me?" attitude and let's not forget the blame game.  On good days, you try affirmations, visualizations,, motivation, and every possible explanation.  On bad days you procrastinate; you psychoanalyze perfection to the point where you are paralyzed. On the very worst of days, you start to believe that your are just average, and you contemplate settling once again for mediocrity. You are just barely hanging on, but please …

hold on because this is where things can start to get very interesting. This where you can be but again thrust into another contrast. FULL OUT WAR !!

Your Battle Cry

 You have been broken, stripped of everything and all that remains is a preparedness.  Preparedness is when the discomfort and despair get so bad that in desperation and frustration you are now ready to do whatever it takes.  In the wilderness you develop s strong desire - you get desperate. Most of the time people don’t change until they get desperate. This is where your hunger, your rage, and your preparedness comes from deep inside of your soul and releases “the wilderness/battle cry.” You are now ready to wage war and rescue your dream.  That is what God/Your Higher/the Universehas been waiting for all along. Your battle cry is a form of spiritual violence;  it is a concentrated and focused intensity that allows you to proceed.  It enables you to persevere, regardless of what challenges you may face.  You are now ready for the next level of obedience; heeding the call of the wild.  This is the call to excellence,  a call to begin walking in your authentic greatness.

This is where your unique, God given talents and abilities reside, along with your divinely appointed dreams and your hearts truest desires. This is where you'll find your contribution to the world - the missing piece to the puzzle.  There is great beauty in the wilderness, this jungle we call life.  In the wilderness, you become detached from the former things in your life.  You find that your comfort zones no longer serve you.  At first, these security blankets being ripped away, may feel like your flesh being stripped from your bones. In actuality, it's the stripping away of your ego,  to the point where you feel as if there isn't anything left of you!  Aha... what's left is your authentic self.  What a beauty to behold - what a gift!

The wilderness and the jungle are both a place of authenticity.  All life must co-exist and expand.  When you embrace your true authentic nature,  God/Your Higher Power/the Universe and the laws of the Universe will support your every step on your journey to greatness.


Shayna Langston
June 2009