Is your life quiet enough to hear the heartbeat of Jesus? How do we find the time or the quiet to really listen for a sound so foreign that we might not even know what we are listening for?
Some of the answers are found in 1 Thessalonians 4:11, which instructs us to make it our ambition to lead a quiet life. Or, as one translation puts it, we are to “study to be quiet.”
How unexpected—quietness is something that must be sought and studied. Silence and solitude are not in our DNA. They are qualities of life that have to be desired and learned.
Listen for the Heartbeat of Jesus
It is in times of solitude and silence that I can quiet my soul and listen for the heartbeat of Jesus. This is not easy in a culture that is addicted to activity.
If distractions speak louder than the voice of God, how much more difficult it must be to hear his heartbeat!
Yet it is in those quiet times, those separate times, that his still, small voice is heard and the passion of his heart is felt. It is these times that give color to the activities of my life.
A poem by Anne Morrow Lindbergh speaks of this learned activity of solitude:
It is a difficult
lesson to learn today,
To leave one’s friends
and family and deliberately
practice the art of solitude
for an hour or a day
or a week
For me, the break
is most difficult . . .
And yet, once it is done,
I find there is a quality
to being alone that is
incredibly precious.
Life rushes back into the void,
richer,
more vivid,
fuller than before!
How have you woven solitude and silence into the culture of your life and how has that quietness taught you to listen for the heartbeat of Jesus?
More posts on how to cut out the noise in your life and listen for the heartbeat of Jesus:
How to Escape the Captivity of Your Mobile Device
5 Soul Care Tips For a Daily Blast of Fresh Air
Please share your wisdom with us in the comment section below. (And, if you liked this post, please pass it on.)
In Him together, Susan Gaddis
This Post Has 6 Comments
It is difficult enough to find times of silence; but even when found, the noise is still in my head. That is hard to quiet. Sometimes, repetition of a prayer or a Scripture helps to focus wandering thoughts. It is not a meaningless mantra, but a tool to sever the distracting voices of the world from an intentional desire to hear form God. With music, phones, activity, our kids are even more inundated with sound and distraction. I have asked my kids, particularly the youngest 2, how they expect to hear God speak if they don’t allow him the space of silences.
I find that the older I get, the more I have to practice these “times of silence” just to preserve my sanity. Seriously. Life is so busy (especially working from home), and there is always some phone call or some email or some music going or some…ugh. I often end up waking at 4 in the morning (not purposefully!) and then use that time to pray and listen. I suspect this waking is really just my spirit saying, “All right, already! Enough noise!” The other place I find solitude is while watering my garden :-). Must’ve learned that from my mother…
I guess growing up on a ranch spoiled me for solitude time. I need it like plants need rain. Lilly, I can so relate to your comments as my house always seems to be full of noise. It is becoming softer as the kids grow up and leave home, but my garden and early mornings still draw me to my quiet times with Jesus. Now it is Mary’s turn to learn to find the silence…and she has a lovely garden!
I sometimes think one reason it is so difficult for followers of Christ to be silent is that from the beginning we are taught to fill up the space. Read the Bible. Pray these prayers. Maybe in early spiritual training we should be told to just sit and be quiet and let the mystery speak.
The Lord taught me the beauty of seeking his face through worship music while on my way to work, riding the train. As I shut my eyes and focused on the music and Him, worship began to come into my heart, it is in these moments of deliberately shutting out the world and its noise to worship the King that I could focus on Him and hear what his heart was speaking. Now three years later, without this focused’ time of worship with Him, I would surely die. There is truly nothing like the refreshing time spent in His presence.
What a wonderful way to weave solitude and silence into your busy life, Catherine. I don’t ride a train to work, but many do, and your suggestion, and positive experience proving it out, are a real encouragement. Thanks for sharing.