Let the Beauty of Our God Be Upon Us

Last week I traveled to Chicago for the first meeting of the Staff Director’s Spiritual Formation Group 5. Silence and solitude. Rest and restoration. The meeting was different from anything else I've been a part of.

There was space to be. To meet with Jesus. To come face to face with myself. To wonder why we hadn't started the next thing yet, because I was getting antsy coming face to face with myself.

I got to walk around this gorgeous lake. Check my Facebook album for more pictures. The leaves change colors there. It was so novel.

We met in small groups, discussed the 3 books we read this summer and fall, and spent time alone reflecting on Matthew 11:28-12:14. Jesus really turned things upside down with the Sabbath.

We prayed liturgically at set times. The title of my post is one of the things we prayed. God really is good, faithful to meet us and bestow his beauty on our lives.

We practiced “Grand Silence” one night, not talking from when we said Compline to when we said Morning Prayers after breakfast. It was hard to be still physically and mentally, to not fill the time with things to do or thoughts to think.

We learned that solitude is essential to leadership, since that's often the only place where we meet God without pretension and hear him alone. Our rhythms and spiritual practices may look different given the “season” of life we're experiencing. Rest is an expression of our trust and dependence on God, and trust is a manifestation of what we think God is really like. We were challenged to find rest in our rest and work; we can trust Jesus as we stop working, and we can depend on him for strength and guidance as we labor alongside him.

I have lots of ideas about what I could do differently now. The two things I’m going to try are to take time for solitude and silence for 5-10 minute chunks throughout the day at specific times, and to try praying more to “Dad” instead of “Lord.”

In November, I may review the books we read: Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership, Concerning the Inner Life, and Spiritual Rhythms. I’m pondering writing a bunch of reviews, since November is National Novel Writing Month. While I don’t feel like writing a novel, I do want to join in on the fun somehow. What do y’all think? Should I do it?

And how have you experienced God in times of solitude and silence? Is this a new concept, or a go-to spiritual discipline for you?