Quiet time with God is the furnace of transformation. Without it we remain victims of our society and continue to be entangled in the illusions of the false self.
In our quiet times with God we get rid of our scaffolding; no friends to talk with, no telephone calls to make, no meetings to attend, no music to entertain, nothing to distract, just me- naked me, and God. We may find in this empty quiet space confusing ideas, worries of the day, disturbing images, wild fantasies, and weird associations jump about in the mind like monkeys in a banana tree. Everything in us may want to run to friends, work, and distractions.
It is precisely in the midst of this struggle with our worldly self and its demons that our Lord comes to us. He is beside us in all of it.
We enter into solitude first of all to meet our Lord and to be with him and him alone. Our primary task is to keep the eyes of our mind and heart firmly fixed on Him. It is only in the midst of Christ's grace and healing that we can face our sin, show our wounds, and face our own true nature.
As we come to realize that it is not we who live, but Christ who lives in us, that he is our true self, we can slowly let our compulsions melt away, take off our masks, and begin to experience freedom as a child of God. We have freedom to be molded into Christ's image, freedom to mature in him, freedom to love and freedom from sin.
So what does this mean in our daily lives? The very first thing we need to do is set apart a time and place to be with God and him alone. The concrete shape of this discipline of solitude will be different for each person but will not remain vague or general. It must be as concrete and specific as daily life is.
Quiet time is a time of purification and transformation, the place of great struggle, and the great encounter. This time is not simply a means to an end. It's ends are met within it. It is the place where Christ remodels us in his own image and frees us from victimizing compulsions of the world. It is a place of salvation.
A heart of stone can be turned into a heart of flesh. A rebellious heart can be turned into a contrite heart. A closed heart can open itself up. A new self can grow in the loving encounter with Jesus.
Scripture should lead us into the presence of God. We must be careful to use that word not simply as an interesting or motivating word, but as a word that creates the boundaries within which we can listen to the loving caring, gentle presence of God.
Scripture should renew the mind as well as descend slowly from the mind to the heart. The crisis our time in scripture and prayer is that our minds are filled with the ideas of God while our hearts remain far from him. The word heart in the Jewish-Christian tradition refers to the source of all physical, emotional, intellectual, volitional and moral energies. From the hear arise unknowable impulses as well as conscious feelings, moods, and wishes. The heart too has its reasons and is the center of perception and understanding. Finally, the heart is the seat of the will: it makes plans and comes to good decisions. The heart is the central unifying peace of our personal life where we are totally one with no divisions or distinctions. It is the seat of our personality. It is where Christ dwells in us, the hope of Glory.
By it's very nature this kind of holistic, integral meeting with our savior transforms our whole being and opens the eyes of our soul to the truth of ourselves as well as he truth of God. This type of encounter challenges us to hide nothing from God and to surrender ourselves unconditionally to his mercy. In doing this we will unmask many illusions about ourselves and about God and we will be led into the true relationship we are purposed to have with God.
If we spend time with God in the beginning of our day he may slowly build a place in our hearts for that day so that even while studying, gardening, working, or building, the meeting can continue in our heart and keep us aware of God's presence, guidance and counseling, bringing us into a deeper meaning of what it means that God is our Shepherd. The Lord sends us out into the world and calls us back to be with him in a never-ending communion.
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