Waiting Quietly
Do you make it a habit to wait quietly before God?
Verse of the Day
“I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from him.”
Today’s Devotional
Surrendered silence. That’s what this verse describes. This is not petulant silence, it is the heart stance of someone who is fully reliant on God. When David wrote this psalm, it seems like he was in some trouble, since he wrote about many enemies who were all trying to kill him. Yet he describes a heart that is fully reliant on God for his safety, protection and victory. David was probably really practiced in the discipline of solitude, and probably all of the other disciplines as well. Let’s take some time to reflect on what we’ve studied about solitude so far this month.
- Silence is shutting my mouth in order to hear God. Solitude is shutting the world’s mouth to hear God.
- Solitude is intentionally seeking time alone that is quiet.
- Solitude is more a state of mind and heart than it is a place. There is a solitude of the heart that can be maintained at all times. Crowds, or lack of them, have little to do with this inner attentiveness.
- The seeking out of solitary places was a regular practice for Jesus. So it should be for us.
- We must seek out the recreating stillness of solitude if we want to be with others meaningfully. We must seek the fellowship and accountability of others if we want to be alone safely. We must cultivate both if we are to live in obedience.
- Without silence there is no solitude. Though silence sometimes involves the absence of speech, it always involves the act of listening. Simply to refrain from talking, without a heart listening to God, is not silence
- One reason we can hardly bear to remain silent is that it makes us feel so helpless. We are so accustomed to relying upon words to manage and control others. If we are silent, who will take control? God will take control, but we will never let him take control until we trust him. Silence is intimately related to trust.
- Silence takes practice.
- To begin, let’s take advantage of the “little solitudes” that fill our day.
- Solitude ensures that, when we do move, we are putting our energy into the right things, and with the right spirit. Solitude ensures that our expended energy is actually productive and actually counts toward what is valuable in God’s eyes.
- The source of all good things, all power, all life. I discover these things in times of solitude with God. My life and anything I do is only possible because I am plugged into the Power.
- Choosing to practice solitude is the equivalent of stepping into the pool of God’s unfailing love.
- God loves us so much that He meets us where we are with encouragement. We get to experience this encouragement in our times of solitude with God.
- The evidence of the power of practicing times of solitude is allowing our mind and heart to see the chaos and confusion in our loves, bring it to God, who turns it into peace.
I want to live with a heart that is fully surrendered to God. Perhaps I need to learn what it means to wait quietly before Him. I need more practice. How about you?
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
How good are you at waiting quietly before God? Is it petulant silence or surrendered silence?
How would you rate your level of surrender to God? How would you like to see this improve?
Do you rely on God for your victory? Your protection? How is this hard for you?