There are larger-than-life characters in the Bible whose heroic actions, especially towards the end of their chapters, are quite inspiring. However, their heroic lives may sometimes obscure a truth of even greater significance: to raise someone to a position of eminence, God often takes them through a precise process of refinement. They must experience trials and hardships until these challenges mature them into great men and women of God.

Take the case of Abraham. While we recognize him as the Father of Nations, he was the same man who had to endure life without a child until a very late age. Abraham’s faith matured through that season of testing and endurance, and God rewarded him for it.

Moses is famously known as a liberator. Yet, he was the same man who had to endure 40 years in the wilderness. By the time God called him, he was an old man who most people would say had already moved on. But empowered by God, he finally gained the ability to go and stand firmly before Pharaoh. That courage was inspired and forged by the years of his long drought.

When we look at Christ, we often forget that His ministry began with a 40-day fast in obscurity. Similarly, before Paul was sent out, he had to separate himself and spend time preparing in the wilderness.

But perhaps an even more significant example is Joseph. To rise to prime prominence, he had to go through prison, where he lived almost forgotten. But it was not wasted time. Prison made him the man who could ultimately extend mercy to his siblings. As he later told them, “And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.” (Genesis 45:5). A journey that looked like a fall from grace ended up placing him exactly where he needed to be.

Likewise, you might be going through something right now—a parched, dry period that is difficult to understand. Yet, this challenging chapter of your life may be God’s precise way of processing you to get to your destiny. Do not despise it. In time, it will all come together.