As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my souls pants for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God? (Ps. 42)
To all spiritual lives there come seasons of dryness, when it
seems that our spiritual growth is dormant and our desires for
God grow stale. These arid times may be ushered in by grief, exhaustion,
or pre-occupation with matters that distract us from our inner
life. Sometimes a barrenness of spirit sets in for no apparent
reason whatsoever.
This personal devotion is created to help you to acknowledge
your spiritual desert and be faithful to God in it. Furthermore,
I encourage you to maintain the all-important practice that Christians
throughout the centuries have advised for those in a dry season:
just do it. Even when we do not feel drawn to worship or prayer,
it is a sheer act of faith to continue to do the things that nurture
our spirituality--such as reading this devotion! After all, it
is God who is at work to instill within us the desire and ability
to do God's will (Phil. 2:13). The dry season is a time to trust
that God is really at work in your life.
In this personal devotion, you will find both permission to be
where you are spirituality and some practical advice for claiming
the dry season as a significant aspect of your spirituality.