Bonus Roundtable: The Source of Strength

Bonus Roundtable: The Source of Strength

Author: Exodus 90 June 19, 2025 Duration: 35:06

Have a question for Bishop Varden?

In this bonus roundtable for Episode 25 of Desert Fathers in a Year with Bishop Erik Varden, host Jamie Baxter and guests Adam, Doyle, and Jared dive into the powerful story of Amma Sarah, the first Desert Mother featured in the series. For thirteen years, Amma Sarah battled the demon of lust, never praying for the temptation to leave but instead seeking God’s strength. Her witness—“Not I have vanquished you, but Christ, my Lord has”—offers timeless wisdom on embracing crosses for spiritual growth. Join us as we explore how her example challenges modern notions of Christianity and calls us to holiness through trial.

Key Topics Covered:

  • Amma Sarah’s 13-year battle with lust and her reliance on Christ’s strength
  • The revolutionary role of Desert Mothers in showcasing holiness for all
  • Rejecting “crossless Christianity” and embracing temptation as a path to virtue
  • Practical wisdom: Controlling the controllables to face life’s challenges
  • The importance of small crosses in daily sanctification

Action Item: Be attentive to the “little crosses” given each hour. Embrace them as opportunities for transformation, seeing each as “a kiss from the Crucified.”

Why Listen?

This episode challenges modern misconceptions of faith, offering Amma Sarah’s example as a call to persevere in spiritual combat. Perfect for those seeking deeper Christian wisdom, spiritual growth, or insights from the Desert Fathers and Mothers.

Get Involved:

  • Submit questions for our upcoming Q&A with Bishop Varden at desertfathers.com or email hello@desertfathers.com.
  • Join Saint Michael’s Lent starting August 15 on the Exodus 90 app. Visit exodus90.com to learn more about this powerful devotion led by CFR priests Fr. Innocent and Fr. Angelus Montgomery.

Resources:


Subscribe and share with a friend to journey deeper into the wisdom of the Desert Fathers and Mothers!

_________

We owe a special thanks to our partners. Desert Fathers with Bishop Erik Varden is...

• 🦉...written by Bishop Erik Varden. You can follow Bishop Varden on his blog, coramfratribus.com.

• 🎥 ...produced by EWTN

• 🧡...and brought to you by Exodus 90, download the Exodus 90 app today


There’s a particular kind of stillness that feels almost impossible to find now, a quiet where you might actually hear something other than the next notification. Desert Fathers with Bishop Erik Varden is built around that search for quiet, drawing direct lines between our fragmented modern experience and the ancient, radical journey of the early Christian monastics. This isn’t a history lesson, though you’ll certainly learn. Instead, Bishop Varden, with the Exodus 90 community, acts as a guide through a year-long exploration, starting at the new year. Each episode becomes a point of reflection, using the stark wisdom of those who went into the literal desert to find God as a mirror for our own crowded lives. You’ll hear their stories and sayings unpacked not as relics, but as surprisingly urgent counsel for anyone feeling parched by the pace and pressure of today’s culture. The rhythm of this podcast is intentional-meant to be absorbed slowly, creating space to consider how their pursuit of essential truth challenges our own attachments and distractions. It’s an invitation to see your own daily landscape, with all its demands and digital noise, as a place where that same transformative silence can be cultivated.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 78

Desert Fathers with Bishop Erik Varden
Podcast Episodes
Bonus Roundtable: Become Who You Are [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:55
Jamie, Doyle, Adam, and Jared from the team at Exodus 90 meet to discuss Bishop Varden's reflection on the effects that Antony's asceticism had on his life and nature.Each week, we'll meet discuss Bishop Varden's reflect…
Episode 3: Become Who You Are [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 12:26
🏜️ Welcome to Desert Fathers in a Year, Episode 3, Become Who You Are. Please visit DesertFathers.com to subscribe to our email newsletter and to download a free PDF of Athanasius's Life of Antony. Modern life is like a…
Bonus Roundtable: Facing Antony's Temptations [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:18
Jamie, Doyle, Adam, and Jared from the team at Exodus 90 meet to discuss Bishop Varden's reflection on Antony's temptations.Each week, we'll meet discuss Bishop Varden's reflection and what practical takeaways we can gle…
Episode 2: Facing Antony's Temptations [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 12:44
Welcome to Desert Fathers in a Year, Episode 2, Facing Antony's Temptations.Visit DesertFathers.com to subscribe to our email newsletter and to download a free PDF of Athanasius's Life of Antony. Modern life is like a de…
Bonus Roundtable: Changed by the Life of Antony [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:35
Welcome to our first Bonus Roundtable of Desert Fathers in a Year!Meet Jamie, Doyle, Adam, and Jared from the team at Exodus 90. Each week, we'll meet discuss Bishop Varden's reflection and what practical takeaways we ca…
Episode 1: Changed by the Life of Antony [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 12:50
Welcome to Desert Fathers in a Year, Episode 1, Changed by the Life of Antony.Modern life is like a desert, parched for the life-giving water that Jesus promised to the woman at the well. The Desert Fathers offer timeles…
TRAILER: Desert Fathers with Bishop Erik Varden | Exodus 90 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 7:35
Desert Fathers in a Year, Episode 1, will go live on January 1, 2025. Visit DesertFathers.com to learn more.Modern life is like a desert, parched for the life-giving water that Jesus promised to woman at the well. The De…