Food for the Wilderness
Daily Devotion
May 12, 2020
Ann Beck with poem by John O’Donohue
This is the Time to be Slow
This is the time to be slow Lie low to the wall Until the bitter weather passes.
Try, as best you can, not to let The wire brush of doubt Scrape from your heart All sense of yourself And your hesitant light.
If you remain generous, Time will come good; And you will find your feet Again on fresh pastures of promise, Where the air will be kind And blushed with beginning. JOHN O’DONOHUE
Time to be slow. We need this reminder of being present to the moment, even when we grow so tired of the need to be vigilant, to be fearful; when we long for the normalcy of too-busy days and an endless array of activities claiming our time and attention. There is a blessing in the slowness, in the silence, even in the darkness. If we give it space, there is rest for the mind and the body. I am reminded of Psalm 23: as we walk through this dark valley, this bitter weather, there is the promise not only of God’s presence and comfort, but of being restored deep in our souls.
O God, bless this time of slowness. Protect us from the darkness of fear and doubt, and bring us to the still waters of your holy presence.
John O’Donohue (1956-2008) was an Irish poet, author, priest, and philosopher, best known for popularizing Celtic spirituality.