Practice of Solitude
by Debbie Poer
To practice the spiritual discipline of solitude is to go into a place where we make space to hear from God. It is a place we must go alone, without outward distractions – think Jesus going into the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11), to the mountains (Luke 6:12), or to a lonely place (Matthew 14:13). As with any of the spiritual disciplines we have explored and hopefully put into practice this year, solitude begins with silence.
It is often uncomfortable to enter into a time of silence and solitude. Even when we get away from the chaos of our daily world, we are then alone with our inner world, which is very noisy and from which there is no escape. We are often afraid to deal with that!
We are so used to constantly being productive that to sit in silence, entering into a time of solitude to wait, to create space for God can be difficult. Dietrich Bonhoeffer states it this way, “We are so afraid of silence that we chase ourselves from one event to the next in order not to have to spend a moment alone with ourselves, in order not to have to look at ourselves in the mirror.”
Even though we may not have the opportunity to go to places away from our home or place of business we should make a practice of having a quiet place we can retreat to. For me, my quiet place at home has always been early morning in a favorite chair. When I am in that chair, in that place, at that time, I am ready to be alone with God. And when I am traveling God always points me to a chair that is my place to meet with him.
What a joy it is when we do have the opportunity to go away to a truly “quiet place.” While not every year provides such a memorable time in solitude, a few years ago, Jim and I decided to rent a cabin in the mountains of North Carolina with the intention of exploring the area but also simply sitting for a few days. We agreed that for one full day we would each spend time in our own space without distractions of conversation, TV, internet, etc. in order to read, pray, and listen for God to speak to us. Had you happened upon our cabin that day you would have found me on the front porch with my Bible, a notebook and pen, and a book and Jim inside at the dining room table with his Bible, notebook, pen, and book. While God did not give me any life-changing instructions that day, He did renew and refresh me.
As we create space for God to speak to us and for Him to do deep work in us, we may encounter Satan as well, as we deal with the evil in our lives. In His 40 days in the wilderness as Jesus was preparing for his ministry Satan was there to distract Him and tempt Him to go in directions other than those planned by God. If Satan was part of Jesus time in solitude, at some point he will be part of ours as well. In 1 John 4:1 we are reminded we must learn to distinguish between the voice (singular) of God and the voices (plural) of Satan and the world. Sitting in solitude over a matter we are wrestling with may mean multiple sittings until all voices have been quieted and only God’s voice speaking to us remains.
From our times of solitude, we grow in a number of ways. First and foremost, internally we learn to listen for the voice of God, becoming more attentive to His speaking into the way we live our lives. After our internal awakening to His voice, we better understand and live out the external of greater sensitivity and compassion for others.
My challenge to you would be this. Are you willing to incorporate times of solitude into your life, taking the risk to really listen to God speak into your life? How will you incorporate solitude on a daily basis? In what ways will you incorporate longer periods of solitude into your life? Take the risk, you may be surprised what you learn about God...and about yourself!
