By Theodore Cooley
Vision Quest, Winter 1989
As Elijah knew where to flee when confronted with overwhelming stimuli, so the desert is still calling to me, calling with the knowledge of the presence of God. I may choose to refuse the call, or to argue with God, or to try and impose my will on the conversation. I know the desert. Any effort to ignore its rules will bring clarity in the end. I know the call of God. Even in the midst of an argument, the love of God continues. Even as I try to hide myself from God, even in the busy activity of the church, God is calling me to something other, something which I am not totally comfortable, yet something ultimately healing in the silence of the confrontation, in the aloneness of the desert.
I know I will return to the desert. I know I will again be alone with God. I know the pattern of over 3000 years will continue, for my trust is well placed in the One who speaks in the still small voice of the absolute, oppressive stillness of the desert.