I didn't want to drop the subject of the discipline of solitude/silence just yet...It is important to find that inner solitude that allows us to quiet our souls enough to be able to discern the still, small voice of God...
Lately, I haven't had that quietness of soul, but I hope for it to be restored and revitalized...
Here are some excerpts from Richard J. Foster's Celebration of Discipline on the subject:
"Our fear of being alone drives us to noise and crowds. We keep up a constant stream of words even if they are inane. We buy radios that strap to our wrists or fit over our ears so that, if no one else is around, at least we are not condemned to silence. T.S. Eliot analyzes our cuture well when he writes, 'Where shall the world be found, where will the word resound? Not here, there is not enough silence.'
"But loneliness or clatter are not our only alternatives. We can cultivate an inner solitude and silence that sets us free from loneliness and fear. Loneliness is inner emptiness. Solitude is inner fulfillment.
"Solitude is more a state of mind and heart than it is a place. There is a solitude of the heart that can be maintained at all times. Crowds, or the lack of them, have little to do with this inward attentiveness. It is quite possible to be a desert hermit and never experience solitude. But if we possess inward solitude we do not fear being alone, for we know that we are not alone. Neither do we fear being with others, for they do not control us. In the midst of noise and confusion we are settled into a deep inner silence. Whether alone or among people, we always carry with us a portable sanctuary of the heart."
How about all of you? Any comments on whether you've experienced this quietness of soul?
Let me know....
1 comment:
I have experienced what you termed "quietness of soul" and it's not until recently that I discovered it. It comes and goes, but I am happy to have it for the time it is in me. I used to experiece what you quoted from Foster as empty loneliness, and this I thought was deep and satisfying to my soul--but it wasn't.
I have always enjoyed my time alone, but it wasn't until I was surrounded by people that I realized I had no inner satisfaction (you know, you start comparing yourself, and start to believe that you are incapable of socializing)Well I felt like that.
It wasn't until I found Jesus that I began to realize that my time alone was not about me at all. In a sense, my time alone has a purpose, a direction, and an identity.
Before my time alone was a time of inner selfishness; now, it is slowly transforming itself into a session of shaping, molding, and clamor.
So now I don't feel as bad since I now know that I am not the only one who also experiences the lack of "quietness" in you. But like I said, I am just happy I can experience it at all.
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