Visions from the Desert

The desert is a dangerous place.
One can die in unquenchable heat of the day,
or freeze to death in the silent cold of the night.

The desert is full of mystery
and life and death struggles.

It is in the desert that battles are won or lost
where one advances towards God or retreats away from God.

In the desert one is stripped of every false pretense
and even dies a thousand times over to one's preferences.

This place where self is extinguished
where one posses nothing except God is in the desert.

The burning heat of the desert is like sweet fire
where heaven invades our soul.

One finds in the desert that there is no room for independence
for the only space left to survive the desert
is absolute trust and complete dependence on God.

God's fiery heat protects and provides and even feeds
as if it was like the food of angels.

Heavenly manna now burns our stomach
when earthly cravings were never satisfied before.

What one learns in the desert is the conquest of oneself.