A Dry Spell

by Carol Schindler, New Jersey

Sooner or later it happens to all of us who practice Centering Prayer — a dry spell. This is a period of time when one no longer feels much comfort in the practice. 

Okay, that’s putting it mildly. It’s a period of time when you feel alone, all alone. Like you’re out in the desert without your camel or stranded on an island without any paper to write your message in a bottle or no bottle for that matter. Yes, this is the time when you begin to wonder what you are doing sitting silently for 20 minutes at four in the afternoon when you could be watching Oprah. Suddenly you find yourself thinking: “Hey! Is anybody out there? Cause I’m really beginning to think it’s just me here and I don’t like my company.” 

Oh yes, the old dry spell. Why is it so hard to take? Well for one reason, before this dry period one’s centering prayer practice was comforting or nice or even peaceful. Although we all realize the practice is not about any of these things, yet, these things might have been there, especially at the beginning. You remember a time when you felt good about your sits even if it was just plain old quiet with the occasional repeating of your sacred word, it was pleasant. And now it’s twenty minutes of itching, twitching, squirming, leg cramping, mind wandering, irritation. And even this would not be so bad if you didn’t feel so gosh darn guilty and worried about the whole thing. What am I doing wrong? Is God mad at me? I should be feeling something and I’m not? Maybe I should quit? I’m a failure at the prayer. God must not like me. I can’t do this. 

A dry spell sneaks up on you too. It takes a while for you to notice that all is not well in your practice. Then you realize that you seem to have a lot more discomfort than you used too. Your mind wanders far, very far away and you spend 19 and a half minutes thinking about Donald Trump and “The Apprentice” before you remember to say your sacred word. When these experiences begin to accumulate, you are deep in a dry spell. So, what do you do? I have no idea. But here is a bit of information that may help. 

You ARE NOT alone. It may feel like God has gone to the Bahamas for a little vacation but God is still there very present within you. Believe me, if God ever decided to leave you’d be a spot of grease on the floor. So even though you FEEL like God is gone, God is there. 

Realize this happens to everyone. Everyone who practices centering prayer will at some time go through a dry spell. This information may not help you out of your spell, but it is a bit comforting to know that others experience this as well. 

It will pass. Yes, just like a kidney stone it will pass. The process may be a bit painful but eventually your dry spell will be over and you will be wet again. Or whatever. 

God is busy working. We may feel like a lump, but God is very busy teaching us things that we could never learn unless we were going through this dry spell. Trust me, once you give God your intention for His presence and action in your life, He gets busy. What He does and how He does it, is a mystery. And you ain’t no Agatha Christy. So relax. 

Have a little faith. Remember faith? It’s hard to remember it in a dry spell cause up until this time faith has always felt good. Now God is asking you to demonstrate faith without feeling and that’s a little like going to the Grand Canyon and keeping your eyes shut. 

Enjoy the Dry Spell Yes you read that correctly. This is where you are for this period of time so be there; surrender to the moment. Don’t wish it away. Don’t wait for things to get better. Accept where you are. Did you ever hear Jesus complain about his situation? No way. He was able to totally surrender to what is. So enjoy your dry spell or at least be willing to accept it. 

And finally remember what Father Keating says: “The subtler and more spiritual the experience of grace, the less we perceive it.” (Intimacy with God, p. 95) 

Now, I don’t know about you, but if this is true, then all I can say is, 

LET THE DRY SPELL REIGN!

Centering Prayer 

- A Beginner

I sit with back straight,
feet firmly planted
and timer set. 
Then I sink into silence. 
A melting within, 
a closing without. 
Soon a tantalizing thought,
or an agony of itches, 
or a cough 
begging for release. 
Then the gentle word 
and a return to the still point.
Over and over and over 
these little surrenders 
that empty me of self, 
drop by drop. 
Someday perhaps 
the longed for place 
beyond space and time; 
the total surrender; 
the loss that gains. 
But until then 
this transcendence 
of frustration 
will have to do 
and maybe that's 
enough for now. 

Ceci LaDuca, Tampa, FL

Meeting the Divine Therapist
in Centering Prayer

Billie Trinidad, published in the Philippine Star, Manila

It was 16 years ago, that I first met the Divine Therapist in Centering Prayer. I still remember that day very clearly. It was a workshop being given by a Trappist monk, named Father Thomas Keating. It was, they said, “a divine therapy.” More therapists? I had had my fill of them already. No one could quite still that restlessness in me that just couldn’t or wouldn’t go away. But a Divine Therapist? God was my therapist? 

Intrigued by that thought, I found myself agreeing to go. I remember coming away from that workshop with such a feeling of peace I had never felt before. I had gone into it, full of doubts, fear, and was just about ready to give up on every day, everyone and most especially myself. 

And so began 16 of the most challenging years of my life as I held on to the prayer. Being in the journey meant being very much in the “every dayness” of life. No mystical experiences, no fantastic out of this world experiences. Just the daily, constant practice of 20 minutes of silent prayer. Sometimes the 20 minutes would whiz by, but most of the time, not. 

How does this silence heal? How does the Lord work as a therapist? It’s about the harmony of my effort and God’s grace. My effort and consent are all He asks for. Once I said yes to the Lord, He took me very seriously. 

God’s first language is silence. Silence is magic. Beautiful things happen in the quiet. Flowers bloom, stars twinkle, grass grows, snow falls, but most of all ... Our Lord was brought forth in silence. 

Sitting in prayer, patiently waiting, there is sensitivity and healing that comes about. As I come to God in prayer, everyday, twice a day, and for the rest of my life, grappling with my thoughts regularly, I realize that my silence is really saying, “Yes Lord, do with me as you will.” And I know hears me. 

Today, my life has not changed much. No miracles have happened. The storms and turmoil of my life are still there. But with one difference. There is a strong and silent presence that holds my life together; again, whether I know it or not. There is a quiet strength that keeps me going in spite of my not knowing who I am or where I am going. I just know, that this God of mine will not let me down. And if I should waver for even a moment, I know He will be here to pick me up and urge me on again and again and again ...