An Honest Attempt at "Silence and Solitude"

Yesterday was the day I was supposed to leave for a three day, two night personal retreat. One in which I was going to do a lot of praying, some planning and make a grand attempt at practicing the twin spiritual disciplines or practices of "silence and solitude." However, due to the weather (and if you live anywhere near Lancaster you do not need me to elaborate on that!), I decided to stay close to home. Therefore, after spending yesterday morning on certain projects and errands, I set aside the afternoon to practice some silence and solitude. Here's how the afternoon went:

12:30 - retired to my basement study, turned on the heat and sat under a blanket on my comfortable Ikea chair. The only noise to invade the quiet around me was an occasional howl of wind rattling a nearby window
12:32 - I scanned four different books by three different authors on the topics of silence and solitude (S&S)
1:35 - I closed the final book and spend some time reflecting on what I read
1:50 - Focused on God's power and glory ... asked God to help me grow in my love for Him.
2:00 - Fell asleep
2:15 - Woke up - decided to find my copy of the book, The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions (one truism about the Puritans, they had the First Great Commandment down - they had a "high" view of God and their love for Him ran deep and wide!).
2:25 - Drove over to the church office to look for this book. Talked with two of my staffers for about 20 minutes. Did not find the book in my office.
3:00 - Returned home. Found the book here at the house.
3:05 - Returned to study ... wrote some in my journal and then spent time praying through both Psalm 63 and a selection from, The Valley of Vision (see below).
3:40 - Fell asleep again
3:50 - Awoke and then finished my time of S&S with prayer.
4:00 - Began writing this blog posting.

Now ... as a result of my afternoon, here is what I learned:

1. These related spiritual disciplines are VERY difficult for me. My personality type is one of DO, DO, DO and GO, GO, GO! Just sitting still before God cuts against my grain. For me to practice these on a regular basis will require effort (that's why they are often referred to as "disciplines!").
2. These spiritual disciplines are VERY necessary for me. If Jesus Christ took time to unplug from the noisy world around him and his busy agenda - who am I to neglect doing the same? I am afraid that my soul has borne the impact of the too little empahsis I have given to these spiritual practices. If I am to lead God's people, I realize that I must make these practices a higher priority in my life.

And here are some specific goals I have set for myself:

1. I will begin most days with an hour of S&S before God, starting no later than 5:45 AM.
2. I will set aside a minimum of one afternoon each month as time to unplug from the noise and busyness and get quite before God.
3. I will plan an annual personal retreat consisting of at least 2 nights and 3 days. Time to unplug and be renewed in God's presence.

So there you have it. Please pray that I will be able to obtain these goals. Below is a portion of the prayer from the book, The Valley of Vision, that I used to help focus my thoughts and still my heart. Enjoy!

Lord, let me learn by paradox

that the way down is the way up, 

that to be low is to be high, 

that the broken heart is the healed heart, 

that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit, 

that the repenting soul is the victorious soul, 

that to have nothing is to possess all, 

that to bear the cross is to wear the crown, 

that to give is to receive, 

that the valley is the place of vision.

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj