All by myself…isn’t so bad

Slow down, you’re move too fast.
You’ve got to make the morning last…~~Simon and Garfunkel

It’s Monday morning. 8:00 a.m. It’s quiet outside. (and inside) The teens that park along our street have already gone in to school. The parents that drive down our street have already dropped their kids off and gone on to their jobs. Jim is at work. It’s just me and the kitties. And the quiet.

I don’t mind the quiet. It’s peaceful and familiar. It’s easy to hear my own thoughts when it’s quiet. All my successes and failures are here. There is nowhere to hide them in the quietness that is my daily life. And so, I meet them head on. And, hopefully, learn from them.

And early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus arose and went out and departed to a lonely place, and was praying there. ~~Mark 1:35

Jesus often withdrew to a quiet place. Some where away from the crowds. Somewhere he could be alone with his father. A place he could hear what God was telling him. A place he could hear his own thoughts, think over his day and plan for the next. A time of renewal, of reflection.

In today’s world, life moves at a fast pace. There are sporting events to take the kids to, music lessons, church events. People are working longer hours. Many times, Saturday is just another work day, and so all the things that aren’t accomplished in a week are left to do on Sunday. Instead of a day of worship and rest, it is a day of rushing to complete the list, lest they start the new week behind.

Industry and technology have provided us with a “better way of life” and yet, are we able to enjoy that life? Or are we a slave to the very improvements that were suppose to ease our burdens.

Being at home all day isn’t a choice I made. I miss my job…I miss being around people everyday. But I have to say that the gift that God has given me, the quietness of the day, is truly a blessing. Something I would have never chosen, but something I treasure just the same.

When is your quiet time? Do you set aside a time each day, each week, that is just for yourself? To be alone with your God? To listen to his voice? A time to renew yourself from a busy week?

Jesus made the time. The crowds demanded so much of him. Jesus even withdrew from his disciples, those closest to him.

Make time…take time…find a quiet place and let God refresh and renew your soul.

Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. ~ John 4:13-14.