Prayer and Solitude
So, as I am reading excerpts from Henri Nouwen, I am challenged to sit still before God and listen to him.
So I sat in my quiet office at the church. I can only hear the A/C running. I look away from the computer and notice the ticking of my watch. So, I settle--with eyes closed. I was afraid I might fall asleep. Instead, a torrent of thoughts, voices, criticisms, hopes, accomplishments, scheduled items, and a host of random thoughts flooded my mind.
Nouwen was right. "As soon as we are alone, without people to talk with, books to read, TV to watch, or phone calls to make, an inner chaos opens up. This chaos is so disturbing and so confusing that we can hardly wait to get busy again. . . . when we remove our outer distractions, we often find that our inner distractions manifest themselves to us in full force."
So I find that solitude forces me to deal with the life issues that I try to avoid everyday.
Nouwen also writes, "In solitude, we come to know the Spirit who has already been given to us. The pains and struggles we encounter in our solitude thus become the way to hope, because our hope is not based on something that will happen after our sufferings are over, but on the real presence of God's healing Spirit in the midst of these sufferings.
The discipline of solitude allows us gradually to come in touch with this hopeful presence of God in our lives."
Take some time to sit still before your God. And let him help you work through the noise of solitude.
So I sat in my quiet office at the church. I can only hear the A/C running. I look away from the computer and notice the ticking of my watch. So, I settle--with eyes closed. I was afraid I might fall asleep. Instead, a torrent of thoughts, voices, criticisms, hopes, accomplishments, scheduled items, and a host of random thoughts flooded my mind.
Nouwen was right. "As soon as we are alone, without people to talk with, books to read, TV to watch, or phone calls to make, an inner chaos opens up. This chaos is so disturbing and so confusing that we can hardly wait to get busy again. . . . when we remove our outer distractions, we often find that our inner distractions manifest themselves to us in full force."
So I find that solitude forces me to deal with the life issues that I try to avoid everyday.
Nouwen also writes, "In solitude, we come to know the Spirit who has already been given to us. The pains and struggles we encounter in our solitude thus become the way to hope, because our hope is not based on something that will happen after our sufferings are over, but on the real presence of God's healing Spirit in the midst of these sufferings.
The discipline of solitude allows us gradually to come in touch with this hopeful presence of God in our lives."
Take some time to sit still before your God. And let him help you work through the noise of solitude.
posted by Randy Rogers at
12:43 PM
7 Comments:
well...here you are...I read a few comments hit the 'Randy's Blog' button and the new posts up to Nouwen are up!?
Solitude is sort of opposite to being lonely in a crowd.
Yeah, don't think most people actually get to the blog page. I was surprised that the page actually came up. It hasn't worked for several weeks.
The quiet, focused moment has been a great discipline for me recently. I am amazed at how quickly I am distracted by the "crowd."
Reminds me of a classic Christian song by Wayne Watson (c.1980s). It is good to be lonely, every now and again . . . to sit a table for two all alone, take a look at the world around you.
I am not so sure that lonely is a good thing just as empty headedness seems frought with ill opportunity. Aloneness now that may be a cat of a different skin.
Perhaps the difference between "lonely" and "alone" is just semantics. I think that taking time for personal introspection is important.
Also, empty-headedness is not what solitude should bring. When we are alone, we cannot let our thoughts run free or empty. There should always be focus on Christ and his Word. Without that focus, we will be lost in a stormy sea of sinful thoughts, lost opportunities, selfish ambition, and any other thing our human mind can dredge up.
excellent!
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