Faces on Faith: Experiencing God — in season and out
Season fast approaches. And for those of us who live and work on Sanibel year-round, our vacation time has come to an end as we prepare to welcome visitors and seasonal residents. But perhaps, before we put away our passports and camping gear and whatever else we have that represents time away, we should pause and consider one more time what it means to find time apart from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
One of my teachers, the late Jerry May, was an incredibly gifted psychiatrist and spiritual director. In his practice and through his books he helped countless folks discover God’s presence in their lives. And his teaching helped many of us learn the art of guiding pilgrims on their spiritual journeys.
Jerry’s last book, actually published posthumously, is all about his experience of the great outdoors, what he often called the Wilderness. For most of his life, Jerry found great solace in the woods. As he camped and fished, he felt a very close connection to the Holy.
In the early nineties he went through an especially difficult time in his life. He had become more and more tied to his office in metropolitan Washington and his work felt very routine. A few friendships came to an end. His mother died. He felt distant and disconnected.
“Through it all,” he wrote, “I was feeling an increasingly passionate yearning . . . for God . . .And somehow it connected to the wilderness.” (The Wisdom of Wilderness, 10)
And so it was that he undertook a series of camping trips to the Green Ridge State Forest in western Maryland. There he experienced anew the presence of God. Much of the book describes those experiences. They are powerful stories. But then life takes another turn, and near the end of the book, he recounts how, in time, he rediscovered he didn’t need to go to the woods to find God.
You see, Jerry contracted cancer. And in the end he couldn’t go camping. He couldn’t go fishing. In fact, he was at times completely confined to home or hospital.
Writing in his last months, he says: “I am sick now. The prospect of death is continually before me. My body is frail, my energy always at the end of exhaustion. At the same time I am wilder than I’ve ever been before. My soul basks in wilderness, and I am grateful . . . In truth Wilderness is everywhere. You don’t’ have to go tromping in the mountains or desert as I did. You may find it in a local park, an open field or a small woods. You may find it in your own room, or your own body and mind. All it takes is listening for Wisdom’s call.” (Ibid, xix; 186)
Yes, on vacation we often go in search of special places where we can and do experience God. But God can be experienced anywhere, at any time. Even in the midst of high season! All one needs do is watch and listen. After all, for many of our visitors, Sanibel is a special place where they go to find the presence of God. So the Holy One must be here!
-The Rev. Dr. John H. Danner, Senior Pastor, Sanibel Congregational United Church of Christ.