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Transformation - Silence and Solitude

November 25, 2007 Speaker: Paul Ortlinghaus Series: Transformation - a look at spiritual disciplines

Topic: Topical

What follows are further suggestions to assist you in practicing the disciplines of silence & solitude:

Sermon Notes
Questions for reflection & meditation
"Reviewing the day with God"

Sermon Notes

Click the NOTES icon above (and to the right) to download the slides/notes from the sermon.

Questions for reflection & meditation (taken from the Nooma "Noise" video - www.nooma.com)

  • Why is silence so hard to deal with?
  • Do you feel like God is distant?
  • Do you wish God's voice would be louder in your life?
  • Is there a connection between the amount of noise in our lives and our inability to hear God?
  • Have you spent the amount of time worrying and talking about your difficult, confusing situations as you have spent in silence, listening to what God might have to say?
  • Why is talking so much easier than listening?
  • When was the last time you were in a solitary place?
  • What is it about silence that is so difficult?
  • Why is it easier to surround myself with noise and keep moving than to stop, be silent and listen?
  • How much noise to I voluntarily subject myself to?
  • Does my schedule, my time, my life look like that of a person who wants to hear God's voice?
  • Do you really believe that God's voice is more interesting than the voices around you?
  • Is it possible that you have been searching for God in the winds, the earthquakes and fires, and He is waiting to speak to you in the silence (1 Kings 9:11-13)?

"Reviewing the day with God" (from John Ortberg, The Life You've Always Wanted, p. 87)

  1. Be still for a moment and quiet your mind.
  2. Acknowledge that Jesus is present. Invite him to teach you.
  3. Go back in your mind to when you first woke up. Watch that scene, as if on video. This may lead you to pray for patience, greater love, courage, forgiveness, or other virtues.
  4. Continue through the day, going from scene to scene. As you reflect on them, some scenes may fill you with gratitude, others with regret. Speak directly to the Lord about this. You may also be led to pray for some of the people you were interacting with during the day.
  5. End with a prayer of thanksgiving for God's mercy and love. Ask him to refresh you as you sleep.

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