Flourishing Life

"I have often repented of having spoken, but never of having remained silent.” Abba Arsenius

I had the opportunity and pleasure of spending two weeks in the desert. The desert is a sparsely populated place. There isn’t much water in the desert, so there aren’t many people there. Where they do congregate, they generally cause a lot of problems because the desert wasn’t intended to support a very large number of people.

Alone time is one of the benefits (or curses, depending on your perspective) of going to the desert. One of the places I visited was just north of Benson, Arizona, a place called Cascabel. There, an environmental group has built a couple of hermitages so folks like me can go and spend a few days alone. Up in Hookers Hot Springs Canyon, I spent about forty-eight hours isolated from any other human beings.

Years ago I read a book by Henri Nouwen titled, “The Way of the Heart.” He says that solitude, silence, and prayer are important contributors to spiritual maturity. In the hustle and bustle and noise of everyday life, it can be challenging to connect with God. God himself says, “Be still and know that I am God.” So, I went to the desert, disconnected from family, friends, phones, and the internet and spent some concentrated time listening for and to God.

What did I learn? Well, it’s not so much about learning as it is about being formed. There’s no doubt that God communicates to us through silence. The desert experience is helpful in training oneself to listen to God. However, it’s not only in the literal desert that we can find solitude, silence, and prayer. Turn off the TV and radio. Shut the laptop. Set aside the phone. Spend some time alone and listen. God is always there. He’s always wanting to speak. Sometimes, we need to shut down other voices so we can hear him.