Do we really believe God is all we need? While we may be quick to answer the question in the affirmative, our actions may tell a different story. We look to things apart from God to make us happy, satisfied and fulfilled.
Amma Syncletica (380-460) was born into a wealthy family in Macedonia (Greece) who moved to Alexandria (Egypt). Her two brothers died when Amma was young, and her sister was blind. Amma came to faith in Christ at age sixteen and gave her inheritance to the poor. Several suitors asked for her hand in marriage, but she declined the offers. Her life verse was from the Song of Solomon 2.16, “My beloved is mine and I am his.” She took Jesus at his word that he was all she needed. She moved with her sister to the desert to find rest and solitude.
You may have heard of the term “Desert Fathers.” Amma became a well-known “Desert Mother” (Amma in Hebrew means mother). As younger women sought her out, she reluctantly agreed to become their mentor, training them in spiritual practices. She advised new converts, “For those who are making their way to God, there is at first great struggle and effort, but later indescribable joy. For just as those who wish to kindle a fire are at first choked with smoke, suffer watery eyes and in this way achieve their purpose, indeed Scripture says, ‘God is a consuming fire,’ so we must kindle the divine fire within us with tears and effort.” She instructed new converts that the devil tries to destroy believers with the following ruse: for mature believers, he directs their gaze to their virtues, creating pride in them and for new believers, he exaggerates their sins, leading them to despair.
These desert mothers and fathers have much to teach our frenetic culture about the value of solitude and stillness. I have reworked several quotes from Amma into prayer to lead us into God’s presence: