Taking every thought captive for obedience to Christ (2 Corinthians 10.5)

Disciplines
Silence, please

Solomon reminded us that there is “A time to keep silence” (Eccl. 3.7), and evidently he knew whereof he wrote. According to Daniel Gross, writing in the June 19, 2016 issue of Nautilus, retreating into times of silence can be very good for you (“This Is Your Brain on Silence”).

Mr. Gross reports, “In recent years researchers have highlighted the peculiar power of silence to calm our bodies, turn up the volume on our inner thoughts, and attune our connection to the world.” When we withdraw from the noise of the world, many good things can happen. Silence – the absence of noise – can have beneficial physical effects, such as reducing blood pressure, relieving stress, mitigating heart disease, generating new brain cells, and improving sleep. Research shows that silence relaxes the body, especially when it is heightened by contrasts – as in between periods of noise.

This suggests that regular periods of silence, layered between the noisy moments of our lives, can have rejuvenating power in various ways.

Beyond the physical benefits, however, are those which silence brings to our mental lives. Mr. Gross cites research indicating that silence can stimulate the brain’s powers of remembering: “On the blank sensory slate of silence, the brain can conduct its own symphonies.” When we are at rest, we allow our brains time to “integrate external and internal information into ‘a conscious workspace.’” That is, when our brains are not continuously engaged in external noise, we are able to reach into the vault of stored information and experiences, to recall, review, sort, and recombine things into new ideas and insights.

So it turns out, yet again, that there is wisdom in the Lord’s instruction to make seasons of silence a regular part of our lives. In Habakkuk 2.20 and Psalm 46.10 the Lord calls us to “be still” or to “keep silence” so that we might know Him as God and contemplate Him, enthroned in glory. It is with such instruction and promise in mind that Christians throughout the centuries have included times of silence as part of their discipline of growing in the Lord. The Lord speaks to us through His Word as well as through His world. The Spirit is able to reveal the Word of God and His glory from either of these sources, but we need to be in a posture of readiness to hear when He is speaking. Silence is the context in which we may expect to discern His presence, illuminating the Word of God, bringing us into His glory, and pointing out applications for our lives.

Making time for silence thus equips us to hear the Lord as He teaches and guides us. This can have beneficial effects not only during times of silence, but throughout the “noisy” times of life as well. Like Jesus, pressed on all sides by a throng, yet still able to discern the touch of a hand of faith, we can learn to hear the Lord amid the noise of everyday life as He directs our every next step, if we will make the practice of silence a more consistent part of our spiritual disciplines.

The discipline of solitude, regularly practiced, affords an opportunity for our minds, hearts, and consciences to rest in silence, and to hone in on the Lord, so that we may hear Him speaking to us by His Word, through His world, or the convicting and comforting voice of His indwelling Spirit.

We need quiet places and silence in our lives. The noise that comes at us every day – the sounds of machines, culture, and people – can distract, depress, and divert us from focusing on the things that matter most. In silence we allow our brains and bodies to rest from the noisy world, and we create space for the Spirit of God to play on the chords of our souls new melodies and harmonies of insight into God and His will.

As Daniel Gross explains, echoing Solomon, “Freedom from noise and goal-directed tasks, it appears, unites the quiet without and within, allowing our conscious workspace to do its thing, to weave ourselves into the world, to discover where we fit in. That’s the power of silence.”

But it does even more than that. Silence allows space for the still, small voice of God to break through to our souls in reviving and renewing ways, to bring us into His glory and transform us increasingly into the image of our Lord Jesus Christ.

For reflection
1.      Why is it so hard for most of us to spend extended time in silence, waiting on the Lord?

2.      Why is it important that we be steeped in God’s Word in order to gain the most benefit from times of silence?

3.      Do you think it would be helpful, during a time of silence, to have something to write with at hand? Why or why not?

Next steps: Plan an extended time of solitude and silence some time within the next week. Review the ReVision study on solitudeto guide you. Write out what you hear or learn from the Lord during this time, then pray it back to Him with gratitude and praise.

Today at The Fellowship: In Part 3 of our current ReVision study, we look specifically at what it means to devote our time to seeking and advancing the Kingdom of God. Since Jesus has commanded this as our highest priority, we need to make sure we know how to use our time for this end. But we’ll need the mind of Christ for this to be the case. The current issue of Crosfigell shows us the potential of what God can do when we offer our souls and lives to Him as living sacrifices. Our newest books, The Kingdom Turn and The Poetry of Prayer can help you realize more of the presence, promise, and power for Kingdom living as a follower of Christ. We also encourage you to download this week’s PDF of our Scriptorium study of Acts 11 (Part 10). Finally, check out the state of your Christian worldview by watching the video and downloading the Personal Discipleship Inventory, a tool for evaluating your worldview and growing in Kingdom vision, disciplines, and outcomes.

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T. M. Moore