What Grows in Weary Lands: On Christian Resilience

by Tish Harrison Warren

How do we cultivate faith that endures? From the award-winning author and former New York Times writer comes a fresh vision for navigating burnout and weariness through ancient Christian practices—guiding us toward lives of resilience, renewal, and flourishing.

Early Christians often grappled with a reality we rarely talk about in contemporary life: that God seems to abandon the soul at times, leaving us feeling as if we are alone and left to our own resources. These are times of futility, when work and relationships feel hard, when prayer feels unsatisfying, and we question if our efforts are amounting to anything.

For centuries, Tish Harrison Warren notes, times of “aridity” were seen as necessary—prerequisites for growth and maturity. Yet in our culture fixated on speed and optimization, we risk losing this deeper sense of the human journey and the resilience that comes with it.

Writing for a moment when two-thirds of Americans are dissatisfied with their work and a sense of languishing is widespread, Warren draws from her own season of exhaustion and also from the rich well of Christian tradition--particularly the earliest Christian monks--to discover the habits and mindsets that anchor us through doubt, difficulty, and spiritual dryness. She offers hope to those who feel like life is overwhelming, taxing, or disorienting.

What Grows in Weary Lands speaks to anyone longing for a life of depth in a distracted age. Warren helps us see that nothing is wasted—that, even in desert seasons, something good is growing, rooted in grace and reaching toward glory.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Faith, Christian Living, Religion, Christianity, Theology

192 pages, Hardcover

Published May 12, 2026

About the author

Tish Harrison Warren is a priest in the Anglican Church in North America. After eight years with InterVarsity Graduate and Faculty Ministries at Vanderbilt and The University of Texas at Austin, she now serves as co-associate rector at Church of the Ascension in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She writes regularly for The Well, CT Women (formerly her.meneutics), and Christianity Today. Her work has also appeared in Comment Magazine, Christ and Pop Culture, Art House America, and elsewhere. She and her husband Jonathan have two young daughters.

Reviews

[Kaley Fry]

This is the first book I have finished in a while, walking in my own "weary land" of postpartum and raisin' them kids (TM). I always enjoy Tish's perspective, and the message of this book was both heartening and challenging. Her exploration of "acedia" -- not simply defined as sloth, but as a deep soul weariness, a "sadness arising from the fact that the good is difficult" (JP II) -- was so thoughtful. She writes, "when I am in the throes of acedia, I catch myself believing that the only way I can be free from my sense of weariness and dullness is to have no demands on me, at all." Me too, Tish!

She draws on the wisdom of the desert saints in addressing acedia, particularly the charge to "stay in your cell". "For the desert monks, to stay in your cell literally meant stay in your room and persist in your daily habits of prayer and work. It was a call to be steadfast regardless of how you feel."

Later, she expounds on this. "To stay in your cell is not to be imprisoned. It is not sheer drudergy or duty. The cell that confines us is the willing constraints of love."

I want to remember her encouragement to go to the source of sustenance (God) when we are feeling weary, distracted, and dull. What are practices and habits that draw me closer to the soul-preserving presence of God? Not scrolling on my phone, surely. I also appreciated her challenge to be in community with people whose faithfulness makes you want to be faithful.

"Resilience is not just a means to an end...it is a necessary part of becoming who we must become. But it can only be learned in the struggle."

"We stay in your cell because God himself is waiting there...the cell becomes the site of theophany."

Tish calls us not to deny our deep desires for something more lasting, solid, and real than we see now -- though it's tempting to numb out, it is these deep desires that help prepare us for the life that awaits us in eternity. Languishing slowly pulls away our delight. We must intentionally reacquaint ourselves with gladness, wonder, and joy.

"If we want to become people able to attend to those things that are deepest and most real, we have to intentionally rewire our brains, sober our drunken minds, and learn to break our addiction to distraction. We must learn to practice silence and stillness and to give sustained attention to our material and embodied lives."

"There is meaning. There is transcendence. There is a God who is wildly at work in the world and in us. His desire for us is nothing less than to be united with himself."

Good stuff. And when I am a little less sleep deprived, I want to go read some more desert wisdom for myself :)

[Katherine Huiskes]

love everything Tish writes!!!!! needed reminder for me that life is hard for many people, all of the time, and that God’s will for us is found in the people, places, and tasks to which he has called us that day. it is not found in some far off, better place that I need to discover, where everything will be magically fixed and there is no pain. We often do receive a change in circumstances that can make our lives easier and I don’t think we need to purposely make our lives harder, but in always searching for that thing that will fix us and make us complete, we miss God, who is standing in our cell telling us to remain, and asking us to trust him more.

Tish really emphasizes the point that God has not abandoned us in times of spiritual dryness. We may not “feel” his presence, but faith asks us to trust that he is ordaining our circumstances in those moments. She also gives wise counsel to remain, when we are tempted to pack up and leave when things get challenging or when we aren’t seeing the “results” we hoped for. It doesn’t mean we should be stagnant or unchanging, but rather, to trust that God is working, and that there are no wasted years in His economy.

[Jeroen Kloosterman]

Met veel vreugde dit boek gelezen. Na haar boek ‘Bidden in de nacht’, was dit een nadere en ook ietwat andere benadering. Elk hoofdstuk bestond voor mijn waarneming uit enkele ‘meditaties’ over het thema van het hoofdstuk. Het unieke perspectief van de woestijnvaders kwam in ieder hoofdstuk terug en gaf leerzame inzichten. Niet altijd nieuw qua thematiek, maar wel belangrijk genoeg om weer tegenwoordig té stellen. Er zouden vele mooie citaten te geven zijn. Ik volsta met één (uit wat mij betreft een van de mooiste hoofdstukken): ‘the discipline needed for contemplation, Pascal suggests, is not only a discipline of scheduling, of having open time in the day or week. It is more powerfully, a fight within ourselves, within our very souls.’ Kortom een mooi meditatief boek over vertraging, volharding en standvastigheid.

[Lori Hershberger]

This book came at just the right time. It was just what I needed. I only wish it were longer.

[Lori Eby]

Here is a book that I needed, and I think our culture needs, though I am curious how a young person’s reading experience would differ from mine with my midlife vantage point. Maybe I just have a different understanding of my own barren places and aridity than I once did. Harrison Warren is personable and erudite both, and her voice and examples provide a sense of her role as fellow pilgrim and wise guide (priest) even as she engages in culturally and universally human relevant ideas. I particularly loved how she brings the desert fathers and mothers into the conversation and learns from them while acknowledging their peculiarities and failings.

[Anna K Baskaran]

Really loved this book. So many meaningful parts, and too many favorite quotes to list…

“Hope is what allows lament. It is what allows us the emotional honesty to rage at the heavens, yet collapse into the hands of a loving God.”

[Danita]

Beautiful. Warren's writing on spiritual formation, weariness, and resilience met me just where I needed it. Drawing on the Desert Mothers and Fathers and her own life experiences, Warren helps the reader "trust in the slow work of God."

[Grace]

This book has nursed my soul the past few weeks

[Jillian Armstrong]

I so appreciate Tish’s ability to succinctly and beautifully say what she wants to say. No dragging out or belaboring a topic. This was full of rich encouragement, not repetitive ideas. This is for any Christian who has felt punched in the gut by life and church and people but who still desires to hold on to God, kingdom living, and being part of communities of faith. This is for anyone who has felt spiritually tired and isn’t look easy, cheesy answers. It’s a bit of real encouragement from someone who’s walking alongside you on a long, somewhat arduous hike with promised visions of mountain lake views—it’s hard to get there but the reward will makes it all worth it.

[Olivia Bedenbaugh]

This was so refreshing to me. As a chronic numbing escapist type the idea to “stay in the cell” and “go deeper” is hard but good. I think this book is relevant for Christians in all different seasons of life and I can see myself returning to this one. Also, Tish Harrison Warren knows ball referencing TTPD!

[emily spilman]

this book felt like sitting on tish’s couch with a cozy blanket & a good coffee. its so inviting & conversational. its encouraging & full of grace & compassion. its also convicting & full of truth. a book i didnt know i needed to read. this might be a yearly reread for me! if you have ever felt weary, you should read this.

[Natalie Herr]

Balm for the weary soul.

[Sammy Kimmet]

I love everything Tish writes! I learned, laughed, and shed a few tears.

[Eliana]

Yes and amen.

[Kristen Yoder]

I love Warren’s call to “stay in our cells,” to borrow the phrase from the desert monks. Continue in the habits and practices of your Christian walk, even when you’re not seeing fruit, because it is in that dreary middle that growth does happen.

[Andrew Kaiser]

Warm and perceptive like Harrison Warren’s other books, this shorter exploration of Christian resilience feels as if it was written for the me of 5 years ago, when I felt trapped in a liminal stage of life. Now, I am thankful to be able to look back and see God’s faithfulness, and attest to the merits of this book’s words of hope and encouragement. Deeply practical, written for the Christian feeling stuck or just meh.

[Sheens]

When I first picked up Tish’s first book “Liturgy of the Ordinary” years ago, I remember googling “Anglican priest????” Fast forward 10 years later — I’m attending an Anglican church, loving the liturgy, and finally making sense of why I have been so drawn to her writing all this time.

It was hard to just sit and be immersed in this book simply because I kept indulging in my impulse to write down quotes every few pages. Such an encouraging little read for those dry, long haul seasons of spiritual desert.

Loved this tidbit in particular: “The Arabic work for patience comes from the same word as ‘to confine or contain.’ This hints that patience is impossible to learn until we find ourselves confined—by our choices, our time, our relationships, our weaknesses, and our commitments. Though constraint is often looked at as oppressive or harmful in our culture, in reality, the confinements of our lives are the scaffolding required to learn to love abundantly, because love is patient. To stay in the cell is not to be imprisoned. It is not sheer drudgery or duty. The cell that confines us is the willing constraints of love.”

[Rachel McManus]

I wish I had this book 10 years ago

[Alyssa Richardson]

Tish nails it once again. Every Christian would benefit from reading this book.

[Denise Weaver]

A worthwhile read for anyone dealing with weariness/burnout. She has a beautiful perspective this topic.

[Amanda (aebooksandwords)]

In this book, Tish Harrison Warren encourages and reminds us that seasons of weariness, dryness, or exhaustion are not unique and are in fact beneficial to our growth as believers. God does not waste even these times in our lives.

“Though we experience this differently, all of us hit points in our life where our steam has run out, where we can’t get traction, where we feel lifeless or tired, disoriented and unsure of ourselves. Things seem hard, maybe harder than we think they should be.”

Like many believers, I am no stranger to seasons of exhaustion, burnout, and weariness on the journey of faith, and I felt seen as I read through this thoughtful book.

This book’s honest and reflective words gently poured into my thirsty soul, helping me remember that I am not alone in my experience in what at times feels like a desert. Perseverance through this life and wilderness seasons proves a challenge for even the most dedicated Christ followers.

Countless others have gone before us in this journey; they—along with God’s Word inspiring them—outline life-giving truths and practices for us to embrace in every season of life. In this book, you will discover wisdom, hope, and encouragement for your journey with God.

I highly recommend this one. I loved it so much that after reading an advanced reader copy digitally, I purchased a hard copy at a local bookstore because I had to have my own copy of this one.

Highlights:

“In our culture of efficiency and instant gratification, nearly everything wars against the slow, quiet virtues we need to persevere in a long apprenticeship to Jesus.”

“The practice of stability asks us to stop looking to change our circumstances to find the good life, and to instead look to God to change and transform us.”

“God gets us going with fireworks, but we grow deep when the craft of faith becomes dull or difficult. This is when we learn to love God, not because we have to, not because he makes things work for us, not because he gives us pleasure, but for God’s own sake.”

“To go deep with God always involves going deep with others, being rooted in a place, a community, a tradition, a church.”

“Numb out, flame out, or go deep.”

“For these desert monks, ‘stay in your cell’ literally meant stay in your room and persist in your daily habits of prayer and work. It was a call to be steadfast in practices of faith, regardless of how you feel.”

“The reason faith requires our whole life is because the mysteries, depths and graces of God are so inexhaustible that the pursuit of God each moment of our lives can only begin to scratch their surface.”

“God simply does not explain himself entirely. He did not drop a systematic theology book down from the heavens to answer all our questions. He has no 24-hour customer service hotline. Instead, he invites us to enter into and endure a mystery.”

Thank you to the publisher for gifting me a copy of this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily and was not required to leave a positive review. All opinions are my own.

[Jenna]

i love to read what tish has to write and this is no exception. great reminders in a slump where i’ve grown tired of persevering

[Camden Morgante]

I love all of Tish Harrison Warren's books so I was looking forward to this new one. As with all of her books, I have to read it slowly and go through it a second time to journal and take notes on what stood out to me. This book is about acedia, the experience of spiritual apathy, dryness, and practices from the Dessert Mothers and Fathers for spiritual resilience. In a time of great burn out and quick fixes, I appreciate Warren's encouragement to "stay in your cell", "pledge your body to the walls," and "let the silt settle." She offers thought provoking lessons and practices for the craft of faith even in times of spiritual dryness. This book will be an encouragement to anyone trying to "trust in the slow work of God",

[Pete]

Another beautiful, pastoral book from Tish Harrison Warren. This is a book about resilience through burnout, and the spiritual lethargy that has been called acedia. She points out that burnout often comes from doing things we love, and she helpfully identifies the spiritual "slump" we feel when we are not on the "mountaintop," which she calls "aridity."

In this book, she says nothing new, and I think the author would agree with that. She looks to the Desert Fathers and Mothers to teach us the disciplines of stability and patience. It continues from other books on the "domestic monastery" idea.

One of the most eye-opening moments was when she explained that the dark night of the soul isn't just "bad things in life," but a necessary step after the "honeymoon" of faith where the training wheels come off, and we learn to love God for God, rather than for the blessings God gives. She draws a connection to Psalm 131, where a weaned child loves the mother more for who she is than what she can give.

The subchapter organization leans into the author's strength in essay writing. The 2- to 4-page mini-chapters aren't sound bytes for short attention spans, but interlocking thought-nuggets building together to a chapter.

**received early access via NetGalley from the publisher**

[Bailey C]

This book is so so so important. American western Christianity is so obsessed with fast paced feelings, when literally the history of Christendom saw seasons of aridity (desert seasons where God felt distant and faith felt impossibly hard) as prerequisites for Christian maturity and growth. Grateful for an encouraging word in a hard season.

Some favorite direct quotes and paraphrases from my notes app since I listened to the audio:

“The desert is for learning how to go on when you don’t know where you are”
Stanley Harawass

Pray with your body at certain times each day, and your soul eventually catches up.

We need to fight the urge to flee, especially in times of aridity. Taking up stability is a way of getting ourselves stuck, and that is the point.
Being stuck is not to be feared or fled. It might need to be grieved, but it is the way of grace and inner transformation.
The way of becoming little by little who we are meant to be.

Grace finds us, only ever in the present tense

If salvation is to meet us at all it must meet us in the slog, this is where God rends the heavens and meets us in the last place we expect to find him, exactly where we are.

“Continue seeing with cheerful seriousness, knowing that unless god wanted you you would not be wanting him” - Lewis

Exactly at the moment when Hope ceases to be reasonable is when it begins to be useful.
Hope is what allows us to lament, it is what lets us rage at the heavens and collapse in the hands of a loving God.

[Katrina Swartzentruber]

Somehow I always feel like I read books by Tish Harrison Warren at exactly the right time in my life. Her writing is honest, encouraging, and relatable. I wasn’t sure how much of this book I would relate to, but so much of it felt like a deep well of wisdom as she talked about resilience, doubt, and having faith when it feels hard or silent. This books feels different than a lot of books on doubt because it’s talking less about a dark night of the soul and more about the mundane/slow work of faith. It was also so interesting/encouraging reading Tish Harrison Warren now that I am Anglican, which she of course can take some credit for. Instead of reading things that she talks about engaging in and longing for them, I was encouraged because these are the practices I get to engage in with a group of people that I love. I listened on audio but I would like to get a copy to highlight and reread sections.

[Chris]

Tish Harrison Warren’s books are so relatable. I love them. She describes her own fears and struggles of faith with words that give grammar to one’s own struggles, and with hope that encourages to persevere. And she does this in a non-self-flagellating way that has become so depressingly popular among many contemporary Evangelical authors.

In this book, Warren addresses the collective exhaustion and despondency that has seemingly settled over our society. She’s not just talking about burnout or depression, but about the phenomenon of “languishing “: i.e. feeling somewhat joyless and aimless, with a sense of stagnation and emptiness…as if muddling through one’s own days. This seems to be the dominant emotion of our time.

And so this book’s stated purpose is about the perseverance it takes not just to languish and endure, but to embrace what she calls “the middle” - that period in life when one may have that feeling of abandonment or distance from God. Perseverance is an unsung virtue, yet vital for developing resilience on the path to becoming who we were made to be.

Warren draws from the stories and wisdom of the early church patriarchs and matriarchs, of how they embraced the middle and learned through their struggles to persevere. In drawing on these examples as well as from her own experiences, Warren offers valuable insight to us.

[Anna Sincock]

Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to review this ARC! This is a beautifully written book that covers subjects often not brought into the light: wrestling with suffering, persistence, resilience, weariness and the Christian faith. I enjoyed that this book had so much to offer on these subjects and I took many notes on the metaphors and perspectives shared.. It may be helpful to know that this book takes more of a descriptive approach to these topics, not necessarily prescriptive, At some points, the chapters felt too brief and I found myself wanting to sit with a topic for a little longer before moving on. Overall, I enjoyed this read and walked away feeling encouraged to double down on the everyday, normal Christian practices - the substance of our faith.

[Kenzie Buchan]

I read this over tiiiiiiiimmmmeeeee. Which I’m glad for. Each chapter is a good meditation and I think reading it too fast I would be noticing the similarities instead of the differences. Really important read bc burnout is a confusing but not new feeling that is widespread and sadly affective.

[Meredithhb]

Lots to think about in this book - I loved the short chapters so as to digest the words slowly.

P. 52-53: “To go deep with God always involves going deep with others, being rooted in a place, a community, a tradition, a church … growth can only come if we remain still long enough to let our roots sink deeply into our Source”