Praying in the Desert

Praying in the desert can be one of the most difficult spiritual seasons of a Christian's life. How do we pray when God is distant? How do we pray when we do not feel like praying? How do we pray when God allows devastation to rip our life apart? These are the questions we face when praying in the desert.

So many circumstances can take us into the desert. Some of the most common are life catastrophes. These can include the death of a child or loved one, a spouse deciding to throw away your marriage, losing the ability to use a part of your body, receiving soul trauma or news that you have cancer, and the list can go on... Others include personal sin. We commit a sin that destroys a part of our life which drives us into a season of the desert. In this, God allows us to reap what we sow and we face the consequences of our decisions. Another, often unrealized pathway to the spiritual desert is God Himself. God will sometimes take us to the desert for His own reasons and purposes that we may not know until we have found spiritual renewal or we may never come to know at all.

Attributes of a spiritual desert include God feeling distant. God has said He will never leave us nor forsake us (Matthew 28:20 & Hebrews 13:5), but why do I not feel Him? Why do I not hear His voice? Why is my life falling apart and God is doing nothing?! This happened to Job. After Job lost so much of what was dear to him, he just sat in the ashes of his life, full of grief. (Job 2:8, 13)

The spiritual desert can sometimes be filled with severe temptation. For whatever reason, at times, God might allow us to be tried and tempted to the extreme. The reasons may be unclear at the time, but afterward, whether we pass or fail the test, we often find understanding on the other end. And this happened to Jesus. "Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil..." (Matthew 4:1). The Spirit led Jesus into the desert?! Yes, He did.

Why does God allow the desert? I do not fully know, but what I have learned and do know is that how we choose to respond to our spiritual desert can and will determine much of our spiritual life to come.

I have been through many spiritual deserts. And I believe how I responded determined much of my relationship with God now. (You can read about a spiritual desert in my life here) Ironically, I am currently in a spiritual desert. I have lost so much of my desire to pray, to seek God and to pursue spiritual growth. And what have I been doing? I have been taking each moment, one step at a time. I am still seeking God each morning. The prayer time is not very fruitful, actually, not fruitful at all. I do not hear from God. I do not feel connected to God. But I sit there. Often in silence. Sometimes praying for others. Sometimes for myself. But I am still choosing to seek the Lord despite being in a spiritual desert.

These desert seasons are often opportunities to engage and seek God when we least feel like it. But this is when our roots will push ever deeper in the spiritual soil, looking for water, looking for Jesus...

What are some practical tips for the desert season? Surround yourself with support. Be open and honest with God, yourself and safe people. Ask for prayer. Be prayed for in person. If needed, depending on the severity of your desert, professional counseling or medical services might be necessary. The key is to not be alone, but to seek the resources that will help walk you through the desert. And remember, the desert will not last forever, it is only a season.

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If you have the time, I would encourage you to take fifteen minutes or so and watch the following youtube clip in a prayerful manner. I believe it will be worth your time. It is called "I am With You" by Bob Sorge. Click here.

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Jesus, when we are in our desert seasons, may you give us the grace to crawl, or even to collapse in the ashes of our natural or spiritual life, so that we can make it through. Amen.




Recommended resources to persevere and grow in the desert season:

• Passage through the Wilderness, Brad Long.
• I am With You (youtube clip), Bob Sorge: click here 
• Job chapters 1-2: click here
• Tree of Life (movie): IMBD click here