THE DESERT

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We moved to the desert-in the summer of my senior year in High School.
Imagine that. Moving from Tampa Florida across country to Victorville California. Leaving behind the sandy beaches for the dusty dirt of the desert. Saying goodbye to friends and familiarity and entering the land of cactus and snakes and other creepy crawlers. As unsettling as that seemed, I was bound and determined to face the difficult challenge-and my new school-head on...so I tapped into a hidden talent--tennis. Hours of practice earned me a spot on the tennis team...the A team no less...and I even won enough matches to earn the coveted "letter"...and a close group of girlfriends. By being open to the experience, I received unexpected blessings...and I even learned to appreciate the mystical beauty and the serenity of the surrounding hills that had become my new playground.

Over the years I have had many desert experiences...some logistical, others emotional...But today I understand that the simplicity of the desert is designed to inspire us to look at the often cluttered interior landscape of our lives...Losing our comforts and our control we are left to rewire our circuitry for the renewal that God is so desperately trying to give us.

So- this is the perfect time to get back to the basics. That's what Lent is all about.
Self denial...for self preservation. Finding out who we are-in the midst of who we've
become. Letting go of the temptations...while focusing on the truth.

It's time to enter the desert...to be alone-without the distractions, the noise and the daily comforts...To focus on the divine, and to re-focus on our purpose. That's what Jesus did when he entered the desert. He fell to his knees and found the grace to get past the temptation and the fear. He turned a deaf ear to the devil, who tried to tell him who he is not...and who he could become. In the simple silence of the desert..the praying Jesus clearly heard his call from God and reaffirmed his monumental mission.

I am on my knees daily, praying about my mission, in the midst of my busy life. Because I am older and wiser and I know that sometimes our routines-really get in the way of God's goals-and the only way to see his will clearly-is to let go of the noise and the distractions...to enter into the desert and straight into his divinity--which always leads us to a Springtime of hope and bountiful blessings!

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