It is a quiet Sunday night here. Sometimes people ask me if or what music I might play when alone in the office. The answer is none. Guess my personality does not mind hearing the sound of silence. Some of that is surely due to the noise in the house when my youngest is awake. He tends to like things loud. Any occasion to just absorb the quiet is a welcome change for me. There are people who enjoy noise on a constant basis. Do not count me as one of them.

The early church believed that solitude along with silence was an essential spiritual discipline. We are not talking about those who choose to live the life of a monk. Those early believers took the model of Jesus seriously. The gospels tell us that He would go off to be alone to pray. I think we can use a little sanctified imagination to guess He also just spent time letting the quiet settle His spirit. Never forget that Jesus was fully human while among us. He dealt with the same issues as we even if circumstances were different. He had needy people around who could weigh on His mind. He had an agenda to life that sometimes cut contrary to the agendas of those around Him. He faced demands in the spiritual, emotional, and physical areas of living. This is why He seems to return from those quiet times recharged to face the moment.

We also live with a divine purpose. It is true that some followers don't seem to grasp that. This does not lessen the reality that each believer carries an eternal reason to life. But where Jesus walked everywhere we face the mad rush of traffic. Where Jesus did not have any phones to answer we have cell phones attached at the hip. Where Jesus did not have a 9-5 job we have demands all around. If quiet was important to Him, should that same discipline not matter to us?

Do you really have to answer that email immediately? Do you have to wear fingers to a nub dialing or texting on the phone? Do you really have to end up with your life being at the whim of someone else's schedule? Maybe life would be better served with a little more quiet. You could spend that time reflecting on something God is trying to tell you. You might spend that time praying for wisdom on the events in your world. You could even just sit quiet while the noise around you drifts away. If you are too busy for those quiet moments then perhaps you are just too busy? If you don't mind, I will go finish some quiet moments before retiring for the night.

Bro. Trey