A few weeks ago, God gave me an amazing gift of a weekend in the Sonoran Desert. The desert is unique in its simplicity and stillness. The sense of rest and thirstiness that permeates the arid land seeps into the lingering soul.

For the past three months, God has pressed me with this one thing – to be still before Him and wait patiently for Him (Psalm 37:7). So, I have been holding my soul quietly open to God and waiting on Him. It has been both a season of relinquishment and of soul expansion. The desert is a place of both.

Its expansiveness and silent power create a sense of smallness and marvel in the heart. It gives an interesting sense of peace and freedom. When I come to realize that I’m surrounded by Someone so much greater than myself and my circumstances, it’s gives a sense of peace and freedom knowing He’s in control.

Because of its intensity, the desert is also a place where shadows are sought for relief and protection. I was told by a local desert dweller to walk in the shade (my Oregonian soul was meandering about in the full sun). Resting in the shadow of the Almighty has taken on new meaning.

The iconic saguaros – the silent sentinels of the Sonoran – seem to wait in quiet expectation with arms uplifted. Interesting side note – a saguaro doesn’t start growing arms until about 75 years old. The young ones stand as an arrow pointing heavenward, while the old ones have grown more ways to do so. In desert years, I’m still young. But even if I have little buds or no arms at all yet, I’m lifting them up on the inside!

God has been gradually drawing me into arid nothingness to show me His oasis of abundant life, genuine joy and soul rest. I’m coming to realize more fully that I can do nothing, and from that place He can and will do everything. Indeed, He is everything and so my soul waits in silence for God alone. If one doesn’t enter the desert with humility, one certainly leaves with it.