THE SECRET OF SILENCE
“Be still and know that I am God.”
A friend likes to tell me, “I am going to do nothing today, and I don’t plan to start until noon.”
About 17 years ago, I began the interior journey. Being driven all my life, “doing nothing” was foreign to me. To this day I tend to be uncomfortable being quiet, sitting still, doing nothing. Even arriving early to a meeting seemed to be a waste time to me.
For the majority of my life I have been either, “full bore” or sleeping, living like there was a shot clock countdown for everything I was doing, and I agree with Mark Twain’s notion, “If it weren’t for the last minute I wouldn’t get anything done.”
The beauty of silence was a secret to me, until I experienced the peace and tranquility that it brings. My journey to the meditative life began in 1999 when I entered into spiritual direction with the wisest, kindness man I have known in my lifetime. Father B, a Prof at Gonzaga, who asked me one question at the end of our first session, “When we meet in two weeks, please tell me about your prayer life.”
This was the first step in learning that the interior journey is of more importance than the exterior life journey.
My first discipline was setting my stop watch for three minutes, to sit in total silence. Even though I struggled in the beginning, now I take an entire day on silent retreat twice a month. It has been a practice for 17 years now. Truly the best way to find God is to be still.
One brilliant wise man once said, “If you spend 15 minutes alone with God each day, you can solve most of the world’s problems.” Start with 3 minutes and see where it leads.
Join me as 2017 is brand new, and discover the secrets only found in being still before God.
