Understanding Dryness in Our Prayer Life, by Jeannie Ewing

“Trials of every kind are temporary, a matter of patient endurance. Trials in the interior life are no different… Yet nothing of pain is insurmountable. Every interior trial simply asks us to cross a threshold more deeply into the mysterious presence of God within our soul.”  ~Fr. Donald Haggerty, Contemplative Enigmas, 171

Frustrated, I placed my daily devotional and liturgical companion on the coffee table. It was my usual spot, perhaps a comfort, where I sat to pray every morning. For years, I’d used the same method: opening prayer with holy water, scan the daily Mass readings, jot a few words or phrases that struck me, then search for a few spiritual gems in my short devotional readings, which I rotated according to liturgical season.

I took my exasperation to spiritual direction. My director listened attentively, then replied, “There’s something waking up in you. Look at the rhythm of the Paschal Mystery: living, dying, new life and fruit bearing. This keeps us moving to the next place, a place we haven’t been before.” …

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