Life is a Desert...

"The soul will certainly suffer great trials at this time, especially if the devil sees that its character and habits are such that it (the soul) is ready to make further progress: all the powers of hell will combine to drive it back again. That is why it is very important for us to associate with others who are where we are in the journey, but also those who have gone farther. Those who have drawn close to God have the ability to bring us closer to him, for in a sense they take us with them." Teresa of Avila

"Take away that absolute (the infallibility of scripture) and you've opened an unpluggable hole in your theological dike." Charles Swindoll

"Life is a desert...be refreshed." (Lifted from the track I received from Southern Hills Baptist Church five minutes ago as they knocked on my door)


It was 25 degrees this morning as I got in the car. For the desert valley, this is the coldest stretch in almost five years. I am familiar with the steps to take during a deep freeze. First, make sure to wrap any exposed exterior piping (or at least turn the facet on a drip). Second, bring in warm weaher plants. Third, bring in any pets. And lastly, wear layers of clothing if you brave the outside.

So as I loaded on my layers, I was reminded of a private conversation with Tom Clegg this week. As I retraced some of the steps of my journey, he suggested I spend a while with Teresa of Avila - a 16C nun from Spain who was one of the spiritual guides for St. John of the Cross. She writes using the metaphor of a castle to describe the progress of the spiritual life. As you enter the first room, the emotive responses of prayer and spiritual practice are easily encountered. But in subsequent rooms of challenge and crisis as you progress to the interior of the castle, "feeling" connected to God escapes you. In fact, your discipline seems met with suffering not comfort. Why is it we retreat to the discipline of prayer and reading scripture when we discover it is winter in the desert? Because we desire to retreat to that first room. But once those doors of shut, we are not to return.

Paul says in Ephesians that those mature in their faith should feed themselves. Teresa seems to add that such a diet does not yield the same "good feeling" as the tasty kid's menu. All to say, I join with Richard Foster's analysis that he struggles to read Teresa of Avila.

However, I appreciate greatly her tie between spiritual progress and a communal journey. We were not intended to walk alone.

The last few entries from Swindoll have been less engaging. Albeit the above quote snagged my attention. I do not mean to suggest that the Bible is anything but true and dependable. But my soul shivers when I think of God - his ways, his promises, his dreams - as a collection of premises that build a theological dike. Even Chuck's summation, that people are fallible and the Bible is not, seems ironic when you consider the "infallibility of scripture" (a total human statement and concept) is the chief material used to build theological dikes.

"Thud, thud, thud." Just as my fingers began to type these thoughts, I hear the noise at the door. Thinking Wendy has returned, I go to the door to find two guys - wearing layers of course - offering me a colorful picture of footprints on the sand saying "Life is a desert..." They introduce themselves as somebody and his friend somebody else. They are from Southern Hills Baptist Church and would love for me and my family to join them this Sunday. As I politely sent them on their way, I opened this familiar track offering the cure to the desert life being spiritual refreshment. "If you find that external solutions are not meeting the deepest needs of your life, then be refreshed - truly refreshed - at Southern Hills Baptist Church this Sunday!"

Of course, to know that I am going to heaven, there are five things that I must know and one thing I must do. First on the list - The Bible is true. It is the Word of God. Infallible. Like a battering ram budgeoning its way into my soul. Surely, just the way Jesus intended.

You know what happens when a dike breaks near the desert? It floods the valley. It refreshes the land. It allows the nutrients for life to bloom again. For sure it can damage all the stuff that we build, but isn't that part of it. Valleys have been flooding as the normal course of life every spring from the beginning, bringing rebirth to the desert floor below.

"Let the river flow. Let the river flow. Holy Spirit come. Move in power."

May our theological dikes burst that our lives might once again be truly refreshed.