“In solitude, we long for God.
In stillness, we wait for God.
And in silence, we listen for God.
You may never hear the audible voice of God. I never have. But I hear God. He speaks to me in his first language, Silence. This language can only be heard in silence. If you sit with God long enough, in deep solitude, deep stillness, and deep silence, he will find you. Solitude is spending time alone with God, not with yourself.
The discipline of stillness can help you develop an awareness of God’s presence and action in your life. Psalm 46:10 says: ‘Be still and know that I am God!’
Until you are still, you may never know. It begins with external stillness, but it goes much deeper than that. The Hebrew word for ‘be still’ means to sink down or relax.
As we sink down deep into God and the Gospel, our hearts become rich soil for the word of the kingdom. Read Matthew 13: 18 which is a parable about God’s word being planted as a seed in the hearts of people.
Solitude is an interior posture of longing for God. Stillness is an interior posture of waiting for God. And silence is an interior posture of listening for God. You can use this simple prayer to transition from reading the Scriptures, and prayer to contemplative prayer:
Yahweh, I open to you.
In solitude, longing for you.
In stillness, waiting for you.
In silence, listening for you, Yahweh.”
https://saltandlightministry.org, “Silence, Solitude, and Stillness,” Edward Keith Pousson
