Rain in the Desert

 

“The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom… For waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water.” –Isaiah 35: 1, 6-7, NRSV

I remember traveling through the Negev desert in the southern tip of Israel, a desert that is extremely barren and receives less than one inch (25 mm) of rain per year. And I happened to be there as it started to rain. As the Israelis on the bus told me, on the one day this year that it will rain. “You are experiencing a miracle” they told me. It is almost impossible to plan a trip to Israel to see it rain in the deepest tip of the Negev desert. 

The desert changed colors, the rare desert plants soaked up the water, little streamlets formed and I even saw an Ibex, a wild mountain goat with long curved horns, bounding across the landscape seemingly excited by the rain.

I feel as if I witnessed the fulfillment of Isaiah’s vision of the dry land and springs of water. In the season of Lent, I may find that my spiritual well is dry and that I am in a spiritual drought. But with intentionality, my eyes are opened to the spiritual rain that surprises. The dry land fills with pools of water. In Lenten practice, it is as if I am on a journey, with Jesus from the Galilee to Jerusalem. The Community of Christ upholds five mission initiatives: Invite People to Christ; Abolish Poverty, End Suffering; Pursue Peace On Earth; Develop Disciples to Serve; and Experience Congregations in Mission. The three traditional pillars of Lenten practice: prayer, fasting and almsgiving bring me into closer alignment with what matters most: the mission of Jesus Christ.

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