Too many Christians, Jerry Sittser says, sit at a banquet table and eat only one food. In this episode, host Tressa Spingler talks with theologian, historian, and author Dr. Jerry Sittser — professor emeritus of theology at Whitworth University — about the newly revised edition of his book Water from a Deep Well and the spiritual inheritance many believers overlook.

Drawing on the monks’ rhythm of life, the Desert Fathers and Mothers, the mystics, and the great tradition of historic orthodoxy, Sittser invites listeners to rediscover something ancient rather than chase something new. He reflects on inhabiting time rather than spending it, beginning the week with rest, the practice of silence (“get up to slow down”), and what the early church can still teach a hurried, distracted age.

The conversation turns honest and personal as Sittser — who lost his wife and a daughter in an automobile accident — describes suffering not as something to overcome or avoid but as something to step into and find God within. It’s an invitation to live in the tension of beauty and sorrow, and to take the small first steps toward a deeper, well-rooted faith.

YOU WILL LEARN

· Why so many Christians “eat only one food” — and what the full diet of historic Christianity offers

· How a January course at a snowed-in mountain camp became the seed of Water from a Deep Well

· The monks’ gift of rhythm: inhabiting time instead of consuming it, and beginning the week with rest

· The Desert Fathers and Mothers — stranger, funnier, and wiser than they first appear

· Union of relationship vs. union of absorption: a healthier way to read the mystics

· Suffering as an inevitable part of discipleship — and the soul’s capacity to hold beauty and sorrow at once

· Where to begin when you feel spiritually dry: small, meaningful, deep first steps

GUEST BIO

Dr. Jerry Sittser is professor emeritus of theology and a senior fellow at Whitworth University in Spokane, Washington, specializing in the history of Christianity, Christian spirituality, and religion in American public life. The author of nine books — including A Grace Disguised, The Will of God as a Way of Life, Resilient Faith, and Water from a Deep Well — he has spent decades helping Christians recover the wisdom and deep roots of the historic church for everyday life.

RESOURCES & LINKS

· Jerry Sittser’s website: https://www.jerrysittser.com/

· Water from a Deep Well (revised edition): https://www.jerrysittser.com/books

· Practicing the Way podcast series with John Mark Comer: https://www.practicingtheway.org/podcasts/practicing-the-way 

· More episodes & SLBF Studio at Upper House: https://slbf.org/studio