One Heart One Mind

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."
Most of us hear that line as a pious ideal. The Desert Mothers and Fathers heard it as an instruction. In the 4th century, they walked out into the Egyptian wilderness to take Yeshua at his word, and what they built there was not a theology but a practice: a grounded, day-by-day path for purifying the heart. Evagrius, one of the sharpest minds of the desert, distilled that path into practical steps anyone can follow. In this episode, Thomas walks through his teaching and asks what it would mean for us to take it just as seriously today.
The surprise at the end of the road? It isn't our effort that gets us there. It's Christ's mercy that carries us into what Evagrius called "pure prayer": total intimacy with the Divine.
If you are looking for mentoring and authentic companionship as you walk a path similar to the Desert Mothers and Fathers, we'd love for you to join Thomas and the Lower Lights community in the mountains of the high desert for a 3-day contemplative retreat this December.
 
https://lowerlightswisdom.org/classes/p/3-day-contemplative-retreat-the-desert-mothers-and-fathers-december-2026

Whether we realize it or not, the Desert Mothers and Fathers are spiritual giants on whose shoulders we stand in the Christian tradition. In the harsh landscapes of Egypt, and later Syria and Palestine, they faced their own humanity and their demons to an astonishing degree, leaving behind a priceless body of teaching for purifying the heart and seeing God.
Join us in the mountains and high desert of Salt Lake City, December 3–5, for an immersive retreat in the life and teachings of the Desert Mothers and Fathers:
3‑Day Contemplative Retreat: The Desert Mothers & Fathers — Lower Lights

There is a renaissance afoot, unlike any we've seen before. It asks us to become something new and to take part in the birth of a new world. There will be pain and sorrow, yes, but a greater measure of joy. Join Thomas as he shares what this renaissance is teaching him, and what it asks of all of us.

If all of creation is the site of divine self-disclosure (theophany) — God's longing to be known — then perhaps nowhere is God more felt than in the divine qualities of the human heart. In part II, Thomas shares a personal account of how he came to know some of God's most profound qualities through his grandmother. He then expands the scope of theophany to include all of humanity — the qualities that you uniquely embody in this sacred world.
Join Thomas for a 7-day meditation retreat in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. October 19-26: https://lowerlightswisdom.org/upcomingevents/7-day-silent-retreat-2026-october

The wisdom traditions bear witness that the universe is not some cold place that is indifferent to you. Rather, teachings across the Abrahamic faiths suggest creation is more like a love letter from God — an invitation to intimately know God's divine being and to participate in ongoing creation. Theophany literally means "divine appearance," or "divine self-disclosure."
In part I of this two-part teaching, Thomas reflects on how the natural world reveals the divine qualities through beauty and majesty, and in so doing, calls us all into a deeper love.
Join Thomas for a 7-day meditation retreat in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. October 19-26: https://lowerlightswisdom.org/upcomingevents/7-day-silent-retreat-2026-october"