Silence and Solitude

Speaking of the ancient spiritual disciplines, one of the most overlooked disciplines is silence and solitude.

Recently at New Season, we have adopted a new system where on the back of our communication cards I invite persons to take "next steps" in response to the word, the message, the music etc. Last week one of the next steps was to spend five minutes a day in silence. When a person signs up to take a next step I usually send an email during the week to encourage them. Here is what I sent to the people who signed up for to practice the ancient spiritual discipline of silence.


Dear Friends,

Thanks for being with us Sunday for the fourth message in the "Overwhelmed" series "Overthrowing Over Commitment.' Thanks too for agreeing to take the next step to spend five minutes a day this week in silence just listening for God. So many times in our relationship with God we do all the talking. While it is great that we talk to God in prayer you and I also know that in any relationship it is a two way street. We also have to listen. One of the ways we do that is to just be silent and clear our minds and let God speak to our hearts.

I find it easy to find a quiet place to do this. You might do this early in the morning or by just shutting off the radio in the car. Just ask God to speak to your heart in this time of silence anything you need to hear or that needs to be revealed to you. Also before you start you might want to just clear your mind. The easiest way I have found to do that was given to me by a coach in high school who was trying to teach me to concentrate. He said to clear your mind and concentrate just start paying attention to your breathing. I have used it ever since to clear my mind. Use whatever works for you. After you spend some time in silence you may also choose to write anything you feel God has spoken to your heart so you can go back to it. Also realize though that during this time of silence you may not "hear" anything but you will be preparing your heart perhaps to hear something later. If you have a chance, let me know about your experience in practicing the ancient spiritual discipline of silence.

Thanks for taking this next step on your faith journey. I will be praying for you.
Blessings,
Robb