“There are two ways of striving to fill one’s place in the world: one
is by seeking to prove one’s self usefull; the other, by striving to
render one’s self useless. The first way is the commoner and the more
attractive; the second is the rarer and the more noble.” - Henry Clay
Trumball

“It was an important day in my life when at last I understood that if
Jesus needed forty days in the wilderness at one point, I very likely
could use three or four.” - Dallas Willard

Intro to Solitude

Foster: “our adversary majors in three things: noise, hurry, and crowds.” The practice of slowing helps us battle the hurry and the practice of solitude helps us battle against the crowds.

What is Solitude?

• getting away with God,
• alone time with God
• “wasting time” with God
• more a state of mind & heart than just a place.

Why Solitude?

• helps us battle against the crowdedness of our lives
• follow Jesus’ example (Matt 4:1-11, Lk 6:12, Matt 14:13, Matt 14:23, Lk 5:16, Matt 17:1-9, Matt 26:36-46)
• because “solitude is the one place where we can gain freedom from the forces of society that will otherwise relentlessly mold us.” - Ortberg

The Fear of Solitude

What are some of the feelings and fears that you have when you are alone?

• loneliness - Foster says that “our fear of being alone drives us to
• noise and crowds.” “Loneliness is inner emptiness. Solitude is inner fulfillment.”
• the fear of being unimportant - in solitude, we gain a proper perspective on our own importance, we realize that God is in control, not us.
• the fear of being vulnerable - in solitude, we are no longer defined by or find our self worth in what we “do” - we are in a sense “naked” before God

What other fears are there that keep us from solitude?
What do you resort to doing when you are alone?

Practicing Solitude

• “little solitudes” - the early morning moments, in the shower,solitude in the car, 5 minute breaks in the day, the last quiet moments of the day, more?
• personal retreats - half day, one day, two days or more. Somewhere alone and aware from everything. (see handouts for a suggested plan).
• inner solitude - solitude of heart, inward attentiveness

What to “do” in solitude

Solitude is primarily a practice of “not doing“. The point is to simply be with God. There are, however, some simple activities involved (reading scripture, praying, the act of getting away, journaling, etc.) but they are just means to the goal of being alone with God.

The Fruit of Solitude

An increased sensitivity and compassion for others.

Exercises:

1) Think of the opportunities you have each day for the “little solitudes” and perhaps list them out (maybe even go as far as putting them into your daily schedule). Now that you are aware of these moments, take advantage of them and have a little mini-retreat. Remember, solitude is more an exercise in “being” than in “doing”, so in these moments focus on simply “being” with God.

2) Schedule a personal retreat. This could be for a half day, full day or weekend. In planning it refer to the handouts. Do not make it a busy retreat (don’t plan a lot of activities). We want to simply be alone with God.

Additional Resources:

The Genesee Diary by Henri Nouwen

Invitation to Solitude and Silence by Ruth Haley Burton

Spiritual Disciplines Bible Studies: Solitude & Silence by Jan Johnson

Next Week: Silence

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