How can we experience transforming solitude with God this year?
One: Take advantage of the “little solitudes” we experience each day.
From early morning moments before the family awakens to slow traffic on the way to work and moments of isolation through the day, we can reframe being alone as practicing solitude.
Two: Develop a specific place and time for silence and solitude.
Identify a chair, a room, or a place in nature where you can be alone regularly. Make an appointment to meet God there. Consider this time to be just as scheduled and inviolate as if you were meeting with the president or the governor because you will be in the throne room of the King of kings.
Three: Try to live an entire day without words.
Note your feelings of frustration and helplessness and use them to deepen your commitment to times of silence with the Lord.
Four: Four times a year, withdraw for three or four hours to reorient your life goals.
See these times as vital investments in your soul and your future.
-richard foster
When you make time for solitude, ask the Lord how he wants you to spend these moments with him. He might lead you to a biblical passage or something in nature to reflect upon. He might lead you to journal your thoughts as you open your mind to him. Or he might simply lead you to rest in his presence, to “be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).
In Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, Donald S. Whitney states: “Without exception, the men and women I have known who make the most rapid, consistent, and evident growth in Christlikeness have been those who develop a daily time of being alone with God.”
How much will you grow in Christlikeness this year?
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