OCCASIONAL
Practicing SILENCE
What is a quiet day for?
This is the time to be with what is… And talk to Jesus about it.
Jesus invited his disciples to come away with him and rest. This is what they needed regularly because of the busy stuff of work (and that’s without families to look after, traffic to sit in, feeds to scroll through). Even our noble passions can wear us down, and often we aren’t aware of all the ways we are depleted.
In silence my soul waits for you alone, O God, From you alone comes my salvation (Psalm 62)
A quiet day isn’t necessarily about extended times of prayer or worship, it’s about simply being alone, quiet, and still with God. If things come up (memories, feelings, distractions, struggles, etc), the goal is to be with Him in those. Stop and listen to what He might be saying about them. Or about you.
It can take practice. And the goal, as always, is to extend maximum grace to yourself in the process.
Top tips:
Our best advice on spending quiet time with Jesus is to prepare for it. Prepare your time, prepare your destination and prepare whatever it takes to get to get away from your screens.
Leave your home. The temptation to do other things, or see to other chores, might be too great otherwise. Go sit underneath a tree in Griffith Park. Head to the beach. Or an art gallery, maybe. The San Bernadinos are only 90 minutes away! Go somewhere you know brings you peace; probably away from lots of people. Decide in advance; leave on time.
Even half a day alone with Jesus can seem pretty daunting. Plan to do some moving, some eating and drinking of comforting things, some looking at beautiful things, some sitting or lying very still, some reading or listening to scripture or poetry or worship, and maybe some journaling. Keep your phone on Focus and try not to take it off. If you fail, forgive yourself and try again.
Prepare your playlist of worship or contemplation music. Here’s some inoffensive (instrumental) ambient music, and use it quite often. Some of us need white noise to focus.
Consider a guided meditation or two, like this Be Still and Know.