On a road trip to Arizona, the desert landscape told a quiet story. Dry washes stretched across the land, and along them, life gathered. The bushes closest to the water were full—green, vibrant, alive.
But just a short distance away, things changed. The bushes grew sparse, brittle… barely holding on. Some looked like they could turn into tumbleweeds with the next strong wind.
It made me think about Jesus’ words:
“A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
— Matthew 13:3–8
The difference wasn’t the seed.
It was the ground… and the depth of the roots.
I’ve lived both sides of that desert.
When I drift from the source—when I step away from Jesus, from the Word, from prayer, from the daily disciplines that keep me grounded—I begin to dry out. My thinking gets noisy, my emotions take over, and I start to feel like that brittle bush… just surviving.
But when I stay close to the source—when I remain rooted in scripture, in prayer, in gratitude, and surrounded by others walking the same path—something changes. Strength returns. Peace settles in. Life begins to grow again.
In AA, we say, “stay in the middle of the pack.”
That means staying connected—surrounded by people who are doing the deal, walking with God, working a solid program, and living in service to others.
Because isolation is where we dry out.
Connection is where we grow.
The desert taught me something simple:
You don’t have to force life… you just have to stay close to the water.
Stay rooted.
Stay connected.
Stay close to the Source.
Closing Prayer
Lord, keep me close to You, the true source of life.
When I begin to drift, draw me back and deepen my roots.
Surround me with the right people, and help me stay connected, grounded, and in service.
Let my life grow where You have planted me.
Amen.
