“Throughout the long hours I adore You, O living Bread, amidst the great drought in my soul. O Jesus, pure Love, I do not need consolations; I am nourished by Your will, O Mighty One! Your will is the goal of my existence. It seems to me that the whole world serves me and depends on me. You, O Lord, understand my soul with all its aspirations….O my Master, shape my soul according to Your will and Your eternal designs!” Divine Mercy in my soul #195
Times of desolation are spoken of as valleys and looked upon as dark times in a soul’s life. But, maybe we need to think differently of these times in our lives.
Often times, a certain spiritual dryness actually helps us live the Will of God more than powerful and emotional spiritual consolations. God knows what we need and will give it to us when we need it.
Look at a map and find a valley, a deep valley. Maybe even a canyon, the Grand Canyon. Trace your finger along the length of this valley or canyon. What is common in nearly all valleys? Water runs through, a river. And, around that river is life. Follow that river down stream and find that it flows into a vast sea. Then, follow the river upstream and find its source, maybe the top of a mountain with fresh, pure snow.
Yes, a period of desolation may be deep, dark and foreboding but as St Faustina wrote even in desolation we are nourished by God. Through every time of desolation, the life water of the soul, that is Jesus Christ runs through to feed the soul.
Picture the “valley” this way. See the snow capped mountain surrounding it, from the peak see the crisp and pure flow of water dripping from the ice, water purer than anything ever tasted. As this water drips it grows in size and flows through the path of least resistance – that’s the way of water. Always flowing down to the lowest place and finding the easiest path. The stream bubbles over rocks and ‘sings’ it’s beautiful song as it drops over falls – it’s song covering the noises of the world. Then this stream, now a river, finds its way into the valley. The life straining for existence gathers to the water and comes alive. No longer is it trying to just survive, now it has a chance to grow and thrive. To live! And as the trees come alive with this life-giving water they reach their branches to feel the sun. Now the sun isn’t scorching, the tree feels life’s warmth and it’s leafs sprout. The tree reaches higher and spreads its branches wide.
That is also an image of what a period of desolation, a valley, is to the soul. This is not about a time of God hating or forgetting the soul. Quite the contrary! This is a time when the soul is open and the “path of least resistance” to God. In this moment, His pure flowing grace, sweeter than anything the world ever can offer or the soul has tasted, can flow from His Throne on the mountain, drowning out the voices of sin and anger of the world as if falls heavier and stronger. Then into the valley this grace filled river flows sedately, refreshing life and bringing what was on the edge of death alive. And as the soul tastes God’s love and mercy, it can have the strength again to reach higher and feel the warmth and love of God’s presence whether for the first time of again, it is alive!