Silence and Solitude

Silence and Solitude

Silence and solitude

Do you know how to get to know God? Do you know how to take care of yourself? How does these two questions tie together? In a very organic way. We can’t know ourselves without knowing God first. We can’t be well if we are not made right with God. We are not flourishing if we do not know God’s will in our life. With the words of J.I Packer:

“What were we made for?
To know God.
What aim should we set ourselves in life?
To know God.
What is the best thing in life, bringing joy, delight and contentment than anything else?
Knowledge of God.
Once you become aware that the main business that you are here for is
to know God,
most of life’s problems fall into place of their own accord.”

How do we get to know God? By seeking him in silence and solitude. We need time to sit in the presence of God and listen to him. We need time to see ourselves as God sees us. We need time to be renewed and restored.

Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10, NIV)

This is not a once-in-a-life-time nor once-a-year thing. But it is at its best a once-a-day opportunity to get to know God. When we live years and decades doing this day in and day out, we are slowly getting better and better acquainted with God.

Then it is easier to trust God even when things are not going our way. Then it’s easier to rest in God’s grace, when our own strength is low. Because God is at work for us even when things look gloomy. God is GOD! God is Almighty! Our problems are nothing to him. His heavenly storehouse has everything we ever need. We just need to seek him in silence and solitude.

No matter how many decades we have been walking with God, we still need to seek him in silence and solitude. Because that’s where we find him and commune with him. And nothing makes our life sweeter and more meaningful than living with God every moment of our lives. The good and the bad. The beautiful and the ugly. God can make sense out of it all if we just let him. We just need to keep seeking him in silence and solitude.

 

Gracious God,
Enable us to be still.
Quiet our minds,
enable us to center them around you.
Open our hearts to listen to you.
Bless us with your presence.
Fill us with your peace &
Equip us to serve you.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Q4U: What are you ways to find silence and solitude?

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you take time for silence and solitude!

* [As you might have noticed, I enjoy reading the Bible in different translations and love comparing them. I have started linking the Bible verses to Biblegateway.com so you can easily read (and compare) them in the different versions I’ve used while preparing each post.]

Image courtesy of Laura Ogrodnik. Linking up today with Sharing His Beauty, Unforced Rhythms, Playdates with God, and counting blessings with Ann Voskamp: #1119 God is good all the time, in sickness and health. #1120 God works for us behind the scenes. #1121 God wants to be found. #1122 Silence and solitude are our best friends.

6 thoughts on “Silence and Solitude

  1. I so agree: “Then it is easier to trust God even when things are not going our way.
    Then it’s easier to rest in God’s grace, when our own strength is low.” The more we know him, the greater peace we can have. He’s always been faithful and won’t stop now. Thanks, Mari-Anna. Praying you’re having a blessed week!

  2. Yes. I love how your words here point to a day-by-day, one foot in front of the other, one little drop of water after another, relationship. We build upon it – this is how we know God and come to see how we are known – and from this we have a bigger foundation from which we are able to trust, don’t we? Silence and solitude are key. What a beautiful reminder and prayer today. Thank you for joining with Unforced Rhythms.

  3. I have found that when I spend time getting to know/have time with God, not only do I feel better emotionally, but I feel more together and less stressed about the tasks I have for the day. It puts everything in perspective for me..what is truly important. Thanks for sharing this truth. I also enjoyed reading your simple and humble prayer.

    In His L❤ve,
    Ann @ Christ in the Clouds
    http://christintheclouds.blogspot.com/

    1. Exactly! We might think we don’t have time to spend quality time with God but God creates order out of our chaos while we pray…and suddenly we have much more time available. Thanks, Ann, for sharing your wisdom. Bountiful Blessings!

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