I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:19, NRSV

As we near the end of the long journey toward Easter, a busy time for pastors and layfolk alike, I ponder the words of Isaiah and the relief and refreshment of a river in the desert.For this Friday Five, name five practices, activities, people or _____ (feel free to fill in something I may be forgetting) that for you are rivers in the desert.

1. Getting an unexpected email, phone call or letter from a friend or family member. Its always such a river in the desert to get something I havent been expecting. For example, this past week I was having a bad day and a good friend just called me up out of the blue to say hey and tell me he was thinking of me etc. It was awesome!

2. Poetry-For me, its both reading and writing it. Its funny because in high school and stuff, I wasnt really that much into writing or even reading it but have come around. In fact Ive started my own collection of poems that Ive written. Poetry has become such a gift for me and in many ways has become a form of prayer for me.

3. Spending time with my family and friends. Just being around people that care about me and love me for who God created me to be is such a gift. I know that if it werent for the wonderful friends I made at the Mothership I wouldnt have made it through seminary.

4. Scrapbooking and Taking Photos-These two kind of go hand and hand. I love taking pics. When I worked at camp, I was constantly taking pictures…mostly pics of God’s awesome creation. I love trying to capture the beauty of God’s creation in a photo. I also rather enjoy sitting down and scrapbooking. It is so much better to do it with a group of individuals who I can laugh with, share stories, etc as we scrapbook.

5. I have a couple of places that are my rivers in the desert…Super Awesome Bible Camp, the Mothership, and my family’s family farm. Each one of these places is a place where I feel so safe and secure and can just go and relax. On the farm, I also love just being able to see the animals being born in the spring etc.