Discipline for Godliness Part 2

The foundation for the weekend Freedom Fighters in January is 1 Timothy
4:7b: "On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness . . . ." The intent of spiritual discipline is simple. They are practices we incorporate into our lives to help us "put off the old man," and "put on the new man." They help us become like Jesus. I listed the disciplines we'll consider in yesterday's FF.

Think with me today about silence and solitude, which are disciplines in the abstinence category. The psalmist prayed "For God alone my souls waits in silence' from Him comes my salvation. (Ps. 62: 1&5) Sometimes we talk so much we just can't hear what God may want to say to us. The discipline of silence is closing off our souls from "sounds," whether noise, music or words. The intent is to still the inner noises so that we can be increasingly attentive to God.

If I have to drive some distance to keep an appointment or make a hospital call, I'll often choose to leave the radio off and just be quiet in the car. The only sound is wind noise. I'll say something like Lord, I give this time to you to be quiet. I'll listen for your voice and meditate on your Word while I drive. Those times are refreshing, and I often complete them knowing that God has spoken to my heart. One of my goals for 2008 is to schedule a day of silence at least once a quarter. It's much easier to hear God's voice in the quiet.

A discipline that goes along with silence is solitude. Jesus is our perfect model. Each Gospel writer tells us of Jesus taking time to be alone with His Father. Consider Matthew 14:23: "And after He had sent the multitudes away, He went up to the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone."

Solitude is purposefully abstaining from interaction with other people.
We choose to be absent from people so that we can be present to God. We choose to "be still and know that [He] is God. (Ps. 46:10) This is not passive. We engage our minds in waiting on God, living in His presence and expecting to hear a word from Him. We learn in solitude that there are parts of our lives for which we need no one other than God.

Both silence and solitude will help us deepen our walk with the Lord.
They will wean us from the clutter and noise of our world and help us focus on our good God who wants time with us. Why not set aside some time in January--maybe just a half day--to be silent before God and alone with God. (Pastor John Strain First Baptist Toms River)

Don't Miss This Great Quote: "Worship is the submission of all of our nature to God. It is the quickening of conscience by His holiness, nourishment of mind by His truth, purifying of imagination by His beauty, opening of the heart to His love, and submission of will to His purpose. And all this gathered up in adoration is the greatest of human expressions of which we are capable." - Ravi Zacharias