Solitude is BE-ing with God

The gem I’m hoping to gain out of solitude isn’t stepping out of my daily life, but deeper communion with God. We’ve practiced breath prayers to create a habit of calling out to God. We’ve made space for silence to still the noise in our lives in order to hear God, now we will go away into the solitude of a quiet and seemingly lonely space to talk, listen, and BE with God. 

The state of Be-ing may be one of the hardest verbs for Christians. We are in the business of getting the job done, without abiding in the Father. Learning to live a life of Be-ing in solitude with God over the course of our lives is equivalent to abiding in God (John 15:1-8). When we aren’t abiding we cannot bear fruit, we can do nothing. There is a treasure to be found in the state of Be-ing; God acts, moves and creates in the Be verb. One example, though there are many is at creation;  And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. Genesis 1:3. This week, let’s aim to actively Be with God and allow Him to move, act and create in our space of solitude.

Solitude is Healing

He reveals the deep things of darkness and brings deep shadows into the light. Job 12:22 (NIV)

The book of Job reveals the pain of solitude through Job’s personal suffering; where there is real struggle and loss. He argues with himself, the idea of sin, friends, and God to make sense of it all. His solitude brings out the darkest parts of Job’s inner-self. He deals with his personal demons, as I suspect we will too. In Job’s suffering he could not hear God: His will or truths, he also felt unheard.  When Job finally had an audience before God, his vision focused, his heart became repentant, and his path redirected. In that encounter, God also took Job’s pain, made his waywardness straight, and opened up his future. It was through the suffering of solitude in which healing came. Job’s solitude story, and ours, should journey through repentance, healing, and revelation of God’s heart. Our inner struggles with self must be purged before clarity from God can be embraced. 

Solitude is Transformative

Solitude is our refining fire. It is meant, like for Job, to remove our impurities and leave us transformed. Like the refinement of gold, we too must undergo fire for what is pure in us to rise above the rest. This is our moment to die to self as we no doubt will face conviction in our solitude. The deep things, often sinful things, will rise to the surface, leaving the less valuable remains behind. It is no wonder God describes himself as a consuming fire and throughout scripture compares us to precious metals being purified by this fire. (Zec. 13:9, Mal 3:3, 1 Peter 1:7). Change is inevitable when encountering the living God in solitude.

Solitude cultivates Compassion

As we transform, our vision focuses to see the world through God’s eyes. When God looks out on His creation He has compassion (Matt. 9:36). He plants the seed of compassion in his followers, it is a fruit we humans seem unable to grow out of our own person.  Only God can cultivate compassion in our lives, and Be-ing in solitude draws us into God’s heartbeat for His creation. We then can love, because He loves us. We can serve because He’s living in and through us. We can suffer because His love has been poured into us (Romans 5:3-5). We can be compassionate as He is an indifferent culture.

This Week’s Practice

---

Our Goals: Our main focus this week is adoring God; abiding in him. Secondary it is letting God cultivate His seed of compassion in our hearts. In both goals we must first die to ourselves. Solitude is the safe, quiet, forgiving space for us to lay dormant before God and be made new. To serve our two-point goals, we not only die to ourselves, but we also die to our neighbors.

I think Henry Nouwen explains it best, “We have to give up measuring our meaning and value with the yardstick of others. To die to our neighbors means to stop judging them, to stop evaluating them, and those become free to be compassionate. Compassion can never coexist with judgment because judgment creates the distance, which prevents us from really being with the other.” 

We are pursuing space for solitude this week for ourselves, but also for others. Solitude is not solely an inward act; it is an active pursuit of God’s heart, and His heart is pursuant of all Creation. So let’s connect with God. 

The Way: Solitude isn’t necessarily a daily practice. Since we are working toward a life of prayer in a busy schedule, I encourage us to choose at least one day this week where we can set aside a substantial amount of time in solitude. Find a safe, quiet, calming place where you won’t be easily distracted. I presume our most intrusive distractions will be the ones in our head. The amount of time we spend is important because likely in the beginning we will struggle through our to-do list, grocery list, bills, previous conversations, worries, and then our guilt will unroll itself. Spend the necessary time to confess, to clear out the impurities that have made a home in your heart. Don’t shy away from airing out dirty laundry with God and seeking healing through confession and forgiveness.

If you make it through confession, pull out some scripture. Read through the Psalms or repeat your breath prayer. If you are ready to start talking, then talk with God. Lay all your requests before Him because He cares. Then sit and Be still. Wait on the Lord. Let Him fill you. Let Him speak into you. (Psalm 37:7, Psalm 91:1)

If you have time in your week, set a couple times aside to practice solitude. The hope is that this will become a habit in our spiritual lives; perhaps yearly, quarterly or monthly. After this practice, schedule a weekend away at a retreat center that provides space for silence and solitude. Make this a long-lasting spiritual habit to enrich your prayer life, your personal life and the lives of those around you. 

The Community: What are your fears concerning solitude? Have you tried this before, how did it go? Let us know if you need accountability. Share how the process is unfolding for you. Comment below.