You finally cleared the schedule. You ignored the laundry, silenced your phone, and sat down with your Bible, just like we talked about. You showed up. But instead of a "mountaintop experience" or a sudden rush of peace, you felt… nothing. Just the hum of the refrigerator and a wandering mind.
If your quiet time feels more like a void time lately, you aren’t failing. You’re just in a wilderness. A dry season. And believe it or not, some of the most important work God does in our souls happens when we can’t feel Him at all.
The Wilderness is Expected
To understand the wilderness, we have to understand the seasons. Winter is a time when nature looks dead; the trees are bare, the flowers are gone, and everything feels cold, grey, and muddy.
But what you don’t see is that under that muddy soil, seeds are starting to germinate and push down their roots. The deeper those roots grow now, the stronger and more resilient the plant becomes later. These seeds are being fed in the dark by nutrients absorbed from the very things that died in the season before.
Eventually, we see the signs of new life: the delicate green stems of snowdrops and crocuses bursting through the mud while the threat of ice still lingers. They are followed by the bolder blooms of spring and, eventually, an abundance of fruit. But we must remember: the hard work of producing fruit starts in a dark, cold, and uncomfortable place. What happens in the hidden place underground is just as important, if not more so, than what happens above the surface.
Finding Treasure in the Dark
The prophet Isaiah gives us a beautiful promise for these dark seasons:
I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name. — Isaiah 45:3
The phrase "hidden treasures" can be translated as "treasures found in the dark places", places that appear inhospitable and uncomfortable at first glance. But God is often most present in the wilderness.
He spoke to Moses from a bush in the desert. He led the Israelites through the wilderness, not because it was the shortest route, but because it was the safest route to prepare them for what was ahead. He fed them manna, protected their path, and even ensured their shoes didn’t wear out over forty years.
If you find yourself in a wilderness today, you are in good company. Even Jesus spent time there. Being in a dry place doesn't mean God has abandoned you; it means He is preparing you. In the wilderness, we face a choice: do we try to take the easy route out by numbing our hearts, walking away, or do we follow God’s route and allow Him to put down deep roots in us?
Why the Well Runs Dry
Sometimes, "spiritual dryness" isn’t a lack of faith; it’s actually burnout. We become so busy doing things for God and keeping up with the demands of life that we forget how to simply rest in Him.
God cares just as much for your physical and mental health as He does for your spiritual health. In 1 Kings 19, we see Elijah exhausted and desperate, even telling God he wanted to die. God, in His infinite compassion, didn’t shame Elijah for his dark thoughts. Instead, He allowed him to sleep and gave him food.
It was only after Elijah’s physical and emotional needs were met that God gave him a new revelation.
Are you struggling to hear from God because He is waiting to tend to your exhaustion first? What if waking up extra early to force a quiet time is only making you more weary, and God actually wants you to sleep? Remember the invitation of Jesus:
Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11: 29-30 (MSG)
Rest in the Rhythm
If you find yourself in a season where the heavens feel silent and your soul feels like a parched desert, remember that silence is not absence. Like the seed beneath the winter frost, your soul is being prepared for a depth of root that a "sunny" season could never produce.
God is not a demanding taskmaster watching the clock on your prayer time; He is the Father who gives His beloved sleep and the Shepherd who leads us beside still waters, not busy ones. Stop trying to outrun the wilderness or perform your way into a mountaintop feeling.
Instead, lean into the unforced rhythms of grace. Let Him tend to your weariness first. Sometimes, the most spiritual thing you can do today is to simply trust that He is holding you, even when you don't have the strength to hold onto Him.
Journal Prompts
Grab a notebook and spend some time with these questions:
1. Identifying the Season
- The "Mud" Reality: If your soul feels like "winter" right now, what specific parts feel cold or muddy? (e.g., your career, a relationship, your prayer life). Describe it without trying to fix it.
- The Root Check: What is one thing this dry season has forced you to rely on that you didn't have to think about when things were "sunny"?
2. Reimagining Rest
- The Elijah Reflection: Elijah needed a nap and a snack before he could hear God. Looking at your current week, are you spiritually dry or just physically exhausted? What would "tending to your temple" look like today?
- The Permission Slip: If you knew God wasn't disappointed in your wandering mind, how would you change the way you spend your next ten minutes of quiet?
3. Searching for Hidden Treasure
- Treasures in the Dark: Reflect on Isaiah 45:3. What is a "hidden treasure" (a lesson, a strength, or a comfort) you have found in a previous hard season that you couldn't have found anywhere else?
- Unexpected Presence: Where have you seen God in an ordinary place this week? (A kind word from a stranger, the sunset, a moment of deep sleep, etc.)
4. Shifting the Focus
- The Holding Prayer: Instead of writing a list of requests, write a letter to God that starts with: "Lord, I don't have the strength to hold onto You right now, so I am choosing to trust that You are holding me..."
If you are feeling really burnt out, and these questions are too hard to answer, you can just these simple prompts
Right now, I feel...
Today, I need rest from...
I trust that God is...