Silent Solitude

SILENT SOLITUDE

Peace and quiet. How many times have you wished for that? How many times have you tried to get it but were unsuccessful? Maybe you share Job's sentiment. Job 3:26, "I have no peace, no quietness; I have no rest, but only turmoil.” We can understand why Job would say this. We may not have it as bad as Job did, but we might still be able to relate to this verse. To say this past year has been stressful is an understatement. As we begin our new year, maybe it's time to start incorporating some silent solitude into our daily regimen.

1) No thanks.

It might seem strange but there are some reasons I might resist having quiet time. We're addicted to noise. Silence is uncomfortable; it feels unnatural to us. If you live in an urban area where it's normal to hear horns honking and sirens blaring, the times when that's not happening and you have quiet surroundings it doesn't feel right.

If your house is normally full of people and pets you know it's rarely quiet. And when it is it's so foreign to you it's uncomfortable. We might not like all the noise we hear but we have to admit that for many of us, it's just weird to have complete silence.

Too busy. We've got too much going on to just take some time out to sit still. I get my prayer time in while I'm on the move. You know, quick prayer here and there. I'm sure God understands. Plus, my mind is too busy. I can’t focus on being still before the Lord when my mind is distracted by all the things I've got going on. I can’t get into quiet mode when my mind or my feet are racing.

To avoid thinking. Sometimes there are things we should be thinking about but we don't want to. It might be too difficult or scary or emotional. So, we avoid going there. We drown out our thoughts through things like the TV, radio, a movie or something else. Have you ever been watching TV at night and you start dozing off? So, you turn it off and get ready for bed.

You're yawning away as you turn out the light, and as soon as your head hits the pillow your mind is off to the races. You start having strange thoughts and you're like, where is this coming from? A few minutes ago I was falling asleep, now I can't shut my brain off.

We sort of turned our brain off when we were watching TV. But now that the preoccupation of the noise has disappeared, all we have now are our thoughts. We don't want that; we're trying to go to sleep. But that's what can happen with silence; our brain kicks into high gear and sometimes the thoughts that pop into our minds are things we don't want to think about.

We have too much of it already. Some people would actually want to have less quietness in their lives. Solitude is not something they look for, it's something they hide from. Maybe as a child you were sent to your room a lot and you had nothing but silence to keep you company.

Maybe you live alone and much of your time is spent in solitude. For you, solitude is confinement; it's restricting. So whenever possible, you seek to be around people and noise as often as you can because you know when you go back home there will be solitude and silence.

And with COVID, we've all had to be inside more. We haven't been able to go to all the places we normally would be so we're spending a lot of time at home. These are some of the reasons why we might be saying, 'no thanks' to some silent solitude.

2) Interrupted solitude.

I'm not avoiding it, I just can't get it. I try to get away by myself but I constantly get interrupted. Jesus dealt with this too.

Mark 1:35-39, "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for him, and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons."

This takes place early in Jesus' ministry. He had spent the day teaching and driving out evil spirits and healing people. So he gets up early and goes out to be by himself. It's understandable why Jesus would need to do this. During his ministry, he would undoubtedly be busy from sunup to sundown. Whether he was traveling or doing all the things I just mentioned, he would not have the opportunity to get away by himself to relax.