Our spiritual lives are a constant interplay, a dynamic process. At the heart of this dynamic interplay are several interdependent pairs of seeming “opposites,” such as activity/receptivity, consolation/desolation, and detachment/attachment, which are, in fact, mutually interdependent.
- Kay Northcutt, Kindling Desire for God, 103
Each day has its ups and downs, its consolations and desolations.
Consolation is not just a second place prize. It’s a gentle pat on the shoulder or a hot crock-pot of freshly delivered soup. It’s one life reaching toward another, heart to heart. Consolation turns us outward. It exists in relationship. In prayer today, ask what forces are binding you closer to someone else. Who embraces you, picks you up? What within you generates new inspiration and ideas, releasing new energy, lifting your heart so you can see the joys and sorrows of others? These are the moments of consolation that extend the tendrils of your heart into the soil of another’s soul. Identify your consolations and give thanks.
Desolation turns us in on ourselves. It is absence, not presence, like an open wound that will not heal. Desolate moments are those without comfort and without hope. Ask also in prayer today what forces in your life cut you off from community, isolating you from family, church members, coworkers, and friends, draining you of energy, spiraling into deeper and deeper negative feelings. Identify your desolations. Name them. Let them go.
God is present in each moment. It may not be possible to know those moments of consolation until you have lived through desolate times. But when the one we know as Comforter comes, you know you will never have to face another moment completely alone.
Along the way, I wish you God’s peace for today’s stage of your Lenten spiritual journey. May Christ’s companionship bless you with confidence for the day, comfort you in trouble, and put a spring of joy in your step.
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