Many men and women of God have endured long seasons of being hidden. This is about to change. There is a shift going on in the church that will bring some who have been on the side-lines to more prominent positions of influence. As the Lord does this, those who have been hidden will appreciate what God accomplished during their time of being hidden.

          The Lord taught me much about the value of the hidden season once after we had remodeled part of our home. As I was standing in my newly renovated kitchen/family room, I watched my wife unpack our boxes of china, recently unearthed from our basement. This was no minor event in our household. At this point, Mary Anne and I had been married for more than twenty years and we had never been able to display our wedding china. Mary Anne used the good china on special occasions, but after the event was over, it went back into the box until the next birthday or holiday. Now for the first time in our lives, this china would be on display.

          As my wife carefully placed each dish in the cabinet, the Lord spoke to me, “Just because something is hidden doesn’t make it any less valuable.” These words were like a seismic wave reverberating in my spirit.

          For a number of months, I had been seeking the Lord for understanding about our ministry. The second church planting seemed healthy, the people were dedicated, and all the major indicators of congregational life looked good, but something was missing. We had fasted and held prayer meetings, yet in spite of all of our various projects for outreach, we struggled to grow. The Lord’s words gave me an entirely different perspective on what was happening in our ministry. I began to understand that the hand of God had been hiding our congregation. His words also made me curious. My mind was filled with questions. What is the purpose of something being hidden? Is there value in this secret place? Is there biblical precedence? What happens when the hiding is over and the ministry is revealed?

         With notebook in hand and these questions in my heart, I launched into an exploration to discover more about hidden man of God.

God Keeps Secrets

            At the outset of my research, it was obvious that God certainly knows how to keep a secret. He kept the mystery of the gospel hidden for generations until He was ready to display His wisdom through His Son. It is also evident throughout the Scriptures that God has a habit of hiding men and women in His quiver for future use. Joseph, Moses, and David are among the many that God kept in reserve for His purposes. When He keeps things or people hidden, He has substantial reasons for doing so.

Some Individuals Are Hidden for Their Own Protection

            As a baby, Jesus was hidden for His own protection. Herod’s response to the Magi’s report demonstrated how necessary this was. Herod’s profound insecurities and paranoia drove him to slaughter many male babies in order to protect his own position. God gave Joseph clear instructions to take Jesus to Egypt and “hide Him” for His protection. God’s loving concern for His Son led to a time of obscurity for Him.

          God still does this same thing. In some regions today, there is a strong Herod spirit. This spirit is territorial in nature and seeks to snuff out God’s purposes for a region by taking out key individuals before they are fully prepared for the battle. When the spiritual climate is not favorable, God simply hides these leaders so that they might survive to fight another day. King David experienced this. At the height of Saul’s power, he easily could have annihilated David. But God preserved him from sure destruction by hiding him until his time was right. In the same way, God protects future leaders by keeping them tucked away in reserve for greater use at a future time. God hides you for your own protection.

Hidden for Rest and Restoration

The Song of Solomon paints a clear picture of the Shunammite bride growing in her love and relationship with her king. This book describes the different times and seasons in the life of a believer. As the book begins, the woman enjoys a season of personal attention from her king while also resting from her previous labors. The king even instructs the other “daughters of Jerusalem” not to arouse or waken her during this season of time.

“I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the hinds of the field, that you will not arouse or awaken my love, until she pleases.” (Song of Songs 2:7 NAS) 

As the king hides her, she is to enjoy her rest and bask in his presence.

           When God calls His leaders aside in this way, those leaders often struggle with conflict and confusion. Leaders often measure their success by how fruitful they are at any given time. However, if we look for fruitfulness when the King is asking for faithfulness, we will be frustrated. And if as leaders we expect great fruitfulness from those we are leading when God is simply asking for faithfulness, we will be misleading and frustrating His flock.

           Rest is not easy for me. As a matter of fact, I had not real grid for it. I needed to learn how to rest. When Mary Anne and I endured a decade of stress and conflict in our ministry, we had to navigate through all sorts of accusations and rejection. As that season of warfare closed, the Lord designated a season of time for us to rest and recover for the adventures ahead. I had to learn to rest, relax, let go, and let God.

Hidden for Preparation and Testing    

            No serious athlete shows up for a game without long hours of dedicated practice. In fact, successful athletes will devote painstaking attention to even the smallest details during practice sessions. This ensures that in the heat of competition the athlete has his best chance for success.

           If athletes do this to obtain a corruptible crown, how much more should present-day soldiers of the faith prepare for the battle? When we look behind the scenes at the development of Joseph, Moses, and David, we see the Lord ensuring that these men had the necessary qualities of leadership. Only God’s wisdom could design the tests necessary to develop the character to lead a nation. God put David under Saul so that he would have years of instruction on how not to be a king. When Joseph’s brother sold him, he received an advanced education on the art of forgiveness. Moses labored for years in obscurity tending someone else’s sheep so hard that he would know how to be a faithful shepherd of God’s own floc    

God developed these men into true leaders as they endured the long years of preparation. When they emerged from their seasons of preparation, they joined the ranks of those who received God’s stamp of approval on their ministries. If we understand this process of God, we will embrace seasons of obscurity and trial for what they really are, our preparation for future ministry.

Don’t Be in a Hurry

            Human nature is often in a hurry. So we often want to rush through the preparation process, especially if we have significant gifts. This can hurt us. Hosea wrote of how this hurt Ephraim: “Ephraim is a cake unturned.” (Hosea 7:8) Ephraim was one of two sons born to Joseph in Egypt. Jacob received Ephraim and Manasseh as his own sons when he blessed them. At that time he gave Ephraim, the second born, the status of the firstborn. Later, when Israel divided its inheritance, Ephraim received one of the most fruitful portions in the entire nation. Yet Ephraim eventually abused these blessings.

            Ephraim never fully completed his preparation. One side of his character was cooked and the other remained uncooked, unable to be eaten, worthless and good for nothing. Rick has said that we need to learn to embrace our trials so that we learn from them. They will equip us for all of the unexpected challenges that we will face in ministry.

You Don’t Need to Find Your Destiny. Your Destiny Will Find You!

            When God hides a leader for His purposes, it is not uncommon for the leader to feel under-challenged and overlooked. These seasons, however, do offer unique opportunities.

             Consider Moses, at eighty years of age, he had given up on his dream to deliver Israel. He had failed in his attempt to assist God’s people and was living the humble life of a shepherd. The burning bush unleashed his destiny.

              Consider Joseph. He was forgotten in the dungeons of Egypt, his dreams sputtering and dying. Even Pharaoh’s butler forgot him—until his time had come and his destiny could no longer wait. Then Pharaoh’s dream freed him from the shadows. When individuals have been faithful to God in the hidden seasons, God will make certain that destiny comes crashing through the door. They will not miss it when it comes.

            Consider the Apostle John. He was exiled and isolated on the barren Isle of Patmos. During this time, the Lord gave him great revelation about the heavens, the condition of the seven Asian churches and insights into key events that would unfold for the next two millennia. His time of obscurity bore fruit for his day, and continues to bear fruit and influence the church even to this day. His destiny found him.

           The great shift is upon us. God is moving many who have been kept in reserve to positions of prominence and responsibility. The lessons of the hidden season, now hidden in their hearts, will be used by God to release them into their destinies.