Hopefully this list below will provide you with a simple guide to be able to clearly determine whether you are actually in the wilderness, or whether you are just having a bad decade. But if you are in fact in the wilderness, then the following signs and symptoms that I describe below should be somewhat familiar to you. These are the signs:

1. Everything in your life suddenly seems like you've lost normal control of it. You might feel like there is an unseen force that is resisting or blocking your usual efforts to make the regular decisions you used to be able to make in your life without much of a problem. This includes where you work, your relationships, where you live, what you own, what you can or cannot do, and what or whom you are normally responsible for. You may find yourself getting very frustrated, annoyed, and frightened during this time as you are blocked from calling the normal shots in your life like you once were able to easily do.

2. The grace is gone. The normal grace (divine assistance) to succeed and progress in your life is suddenly missing. It's like the car just ran out of gas, and the only way you can make it go forward is to push it yourself. Before, God may have allowed you to choose, and He gave you the strength and ability to be part of that relationship, church, place of ministry, or job. But now you feel like a stranger, where before you used to feel like you fit and had a place with that certain person or group. During this time, you may only have what or whom God wants in your life because He wants as few distractions as possible while He is changing you in the wilderness.

3. The old unhealed areas of pain, and sin problems you used to keep fairly buried or under control are suddenly coming to the surface full force. And you don't seem to have the usual ability you used to have to ease the pain or keep yourself from sinning in that area. You may find yourself finally grieving over a loss, or traumatic event that you had long since buried, but has been secretly sapping your strength for many years. Plus, if you have practiced any secret sin habit, you may suddenly have less self-control over it, and you will most likely be getting caught much more easily, like someone or something is supernaturally causing it. Your hidden problem will be exposed to everyone so that you will be forced to face it and receive God’s to help to finally be free from it.

4. You have a sense of being pulled away from the world, and into an intensive time of introspection, study, prayer, and just spending time alone with God. Your normal attachments to the world’s obligations suddenly have no support from God and you now live fairly off the grid. It's almost like driving on a highway and all of the sudden your car takes an exit and stays parked in a secret spot while you sit and watch all the other cars buzz by. You may feel like a ghost that is still living in a body during this time, and whoever you used to be doesn't exist anymore. Your old life is gone, and the road that was before you has ended and you're not really sure what to do, or where to go next.

5. Your finances dry up except for the bare essentials. All of the sudden, it gets very difficult to pay your bills, almost to the point where you are beginning to wonder if you are going to end up living in the woods, or whether you will even survive at all. The regular money you used to have to pay your normal bills suddenly gets dried up except for what is actually needed for your basic survival. It's like the depression of 1929 just came to you personally, and you are wondering what in the world's going on. You may find yourself going to food banks for the first time, or having people give you money to get by. This may vary a bit if you have kids, but it will still be some slim pickings for a while. You learn to live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God for everything in your life and all other previous means of support or direction is now very limited.

There are other signs and symptoms to being in the wilderness, but these are the five basic signs that should tip you off as to whether you are actually in the wilderness or not. If you don't see most of these things happening in your life then chances are that you are not in the wilderness but just going through a trial or you are just having a tough time with life for some other reason. Rest assured though, if you are a true Christian then you can expect God to lead you through His wilderness boot camp at some point. It is time for the Bride to make herself ready and nobody will be left out.

^{REV 19:7} Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.