This is not child language. Think carefully. You will hear wise advice. When someone is ranting and raving, it’s a good idea to sit quietly. Think. The title statement may sound rough. Sometimes, we want to convey our message to someone else quite firmly.
Inherent in this title statement, “Be quiet. Be thoughtful. Consider your surroundings. Develop a positive environmental atmosphere. Consider others.” Solitude, the state of being alone, is often considered one of the traditional spiritual disciplines associated with silence. Be alone with God. Be alone with your own thoughts. Pray. Meditate on ancient biblical concepts. Think on positive things that have happened. Enjoy the presence of The Almighty and the accompanying peace. Some people use solitude as a way to distance themselves from worldly distractions and acknowledge what’s in their hearts to hear the voice of God. Being alone can be used as a time of rest, refreshment and rejuvenation. Solitude and quietness calm the mind. Lowers blood pressure. Quiet time elevates the internal senses, keens the thought process. The divine warrior, mind of all greatness and perfection, invited His followers to share times of solitude with Him. Because so many people were coming and going, his followers didn’t eat. He said, ‘Come with me to a quiet place and rest.’ They went to a solitary place by boat.” How are you going to know what to do or what “next steps” if you don’t stop to do introspection and reflection? Alone time is a valuable practice. If you’re moving around, busy constantly, how can you know what you are thinking? If someone close to you is always talking, talking, how can you hear your own thoughts. You need quiet to formulate your thinking. If you’re always listening to a very loquacious person or companion, after a while, you don’t know who’s thinking what.
Watch for that. That person is making all the decisions and if you trust that person to do that, that’s fine. Don’t be like a robot. Filter the information. At the same time, be open to wise advice and counsel. Another benefit of periodic times of solitude is that such times allow us to refocus ourselves on what is truly important. It is good to “come away; time spent away from others, away from cell phones, away from television shows, away from the daily grind. We don’t want the “worries of this life” to choke out our wisdom. We live and studied to gain wisdom. The practice of solitude, like other religious practices, can be taken to an unhealthy extreme. Don’t be a hermit or cloister yourselves away from society. However, to fully enjoy our relationship with God and fully participate in godly community, we develop a personal relationship one-on-one relationship with God. [www.gotquestions.org]
Jeanette Grattan Parker is Founder/Superintendent Today’s Fresh Start Charter Schools with S.T.E.A.M. Academy www.todaysfreshstart.org; A Top LA County School: Thank you for reading!
