The reason for prayer … and solitude.

The reason for prayer … and solitude.  Matthew 6; Romans 12.2

This past week, I attended the ‘Q’ Conference in Boston, and among many influential thinkers, got to hear one of my favorite teachers, who has greatly influenced my thinking: Gordon MacDonald. MacDonald is now 75 and is still living the dream of serving God full out, with no sight of retirement in his vision1. His last book was aptly called The Resilient Life, and I saw firsthand how he is indeed living that life. But years ago, it was MacDonald who got me thinking about the two very different worlds I straddle—an inner world, in which I hold my thoughts, ideas, feelings and fears—and an outer world, which is public and observable to others. I had to ask myself:

>Am I making time regularly to order my inner world?

Here’s how someone else described their intentionality: I want first of all . . . to be at peace with myself. I want a singleness of eye, a purity of intention, a central core to my life that will enable me to carry out these obligations and activities as well as I can. I want, in fact—to borrow from the language of the saints—to live “in grace” as much of the time as possible . . . By grace I mean an inner harmony, essentially spiritual, which can be translated into outward harmony. I am seeking perhaps what Socrates asked for in the prayer from the Phaedrus when he said, “May the outward and inward man be one.” I would like to achieve a state of inner spiritual grace from which I could function and give as I was meant to in the eye of God.2

be still, and know that I am God.3 Simple, clear.

be still … practice solitude. Does ‘solitude’ speak of peace or isolation? Depends on you. Loneliness is marked by a sense of isolation. Solitude, on the other hand, is a state of being alone without being lonely and can lead to self-awareness.4 Far greater, solitude can and should lead us to an awareness of God! I am sure that solitude is on the endangered species list for we humans. See, we are of an age in which it seems instinctive to give attention to every cubic inch of life other than our inner worlds—the only place from which we can gain strength to be brave, or even beat, any outer turbulence.5

Be transformed by the renewing of your mind … rather than being squeezed into the world’s mold. By ordering our inner worlds, by making friends with solitude, we choose to then influence our outer world. We find ourselves proactive rather than reactive to our circumstances. And certainly we make time to pray, and commune with God.

A word here from Africa: a nineteenth-century explorer had hired a group of African villagers to provide support for his exploration of a portion of unmapped Africa. On the first three days of their trek, they achieved an unexpected rate of speed, which put them substantially ahead of schedule. The scientist was elated. But all that changed on the fourth day when he arose from his tent and discovered that no one was moving. In fact he was told that the African support team intended to sit the day out. When he asked why, he was told that they had decided they’d been moving much too fast and that it was time to stop and let their souls catch up with their bodies.6 Do you need time for your soul to catch up to the pace you keep?

You will likely not have solitude unless you make it a priority, and get intentional about it. solitude is the most critical of the spiritual disciplines for us to practice. Yes, it is a discipline, and yes, it requires practice! For it is in a place of solitude, we find God. be still, and know that I am God. In solitude, we find intimacy with God.

You can’t build an intimate relationship with another person if all you do together is rush here and there with the radio blasting, driving and answering your cell phone messages, while drinking your protein shake! So, why would you expect that you could have a meaningful relationship with God that way? Hmmm.

Think about this:

He who orders his inner spiritual world makes a place for God to visit and speak.

When he hears God speak, when he feels God’s presence near, the world is set aright. Think then about cultivating solitude in your life, dear friend. For thus the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said, "In repentance and rest you will be saved, in quietness and trust is your strength."7

When Jesus was with the disciples, he modeled for them the practice of solitude, and the premium he placed on prayer. Then at their request he taught them to pray. May we make it our aim to incorporate the practice of solitude and the sweetness of prayer into our daily lives.

Christine

1 MacDonald is chancellor of Denver Theological Seminary

2 quote from Anne Morrow Lindbergh, The Gift from the Sea; the question before it posed by Gordon MacDonald in Ordering your Private World

3 Psalm 46.10

4 “What is Solitude?” Psychology Today

http://www.psychologytoday.com/arti…/200308/what-is-solitude

5 ibid, MacDonald.

6 from the writings of Mrs. Charles Cowman

7 Isaiah 30.15

What Is Solitude?

Loneliness is marked by a sense of isolation. Solitude, on the other hand, is a state of being alone without being lonely and can lead to self-awareness. by Anonymous

psychologytoday.com