Daily Meditation for May 15, 2025

Desert experiences occur in varying places and times. For example, Jonah inside the whale. His desert is wet, stinky and contained until he is burped out at Nineveh. Not the usual type of desert. Yet, this is the place where, feeling alone and in need, Jonah encounters God: “In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave, I called for help, and he listened to my cry” (Jonah 2:2). Or consider the Gospel story of the woman at the well. Again, this is not your usual desert story; it happens at a well. Still, the woman is thirsting to belong, to be recognized as having value. When she acknowledges Jesus as the Messiah, her thirst is satisfied. “Please, sir,” the woman says, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again…” (John 4: 15). Jesus also promises us help in our desert places; we need only to ask.

By Dianne Schlichting, OblSB