Desert

The desert is dry and hot and uncomfortable. That is, for someone as human as I it is. I feel thirsty. I can see the heat rising off the sand in the distance. It plays tricks on the eyes. It tries to deceive unsuspecting travelers, who are lost and can not seem to find their way back to civilization. Were they not so susceptible to these hallucinations, they might not be stranded. I am one of them. I find I have passed the same cactus at least four times. I try not to walk in circles but the desert is having her way. At night, she is so cold. I shiver under the moon. What else is there to do but wait for the rain every day? Such a long way off it seems.

But a pillar of cloud and fire is set before me. I marks my steps and leads the way. He is taking me to water. He is taking me to safety. He is taking me to the place where it will rain for days. He will not be angry that I was lost in the desert, but will greet me with opened arms and proclaim my return. He is love. He is my love. And he is in me and with me and for me. Someday, He will lead me to the place where my thirst will be forever quenched, and the water on my lips will be delicious.

The desert is a wonderful place to wait. How much sweeter will be the day I come out of such a place!