Chapter 30 -- Soul Enrichment
One of the obstacles to our spiritual growth is noise. Beware of noise from the outer world. Also guard against the noise that builds up within.
Where does this inner noise come from? Inner noise stems from worry about worldly things. Worldly things produce what is contrary to God (Romans 8:5-6).
The discipline of silence can still the noise of the world. It can turn us from worldly matters to spiritual ones. It is really a form of repentance.
How do our souls grow? Our souls thrive on silence. When does our spirituality build a deeper root system? When we make space for silence. Our souls are enriched by silence; in the quiet they revel and grow.
Take a look at the natural world and you'll see silence at work. Living things grow silently. Trees put down deeper roots without a sound. Trees bear fruit without the slightest noise. In the ocean deep, hardly a sound is heard.
Silence is mystical. Silence teaches us. A child in the mother's womb can't make sounds but grows in silence. Early in the morning when we wake to hear nature in silence, we grasp the deeper meaning of our lives.
Silence is a time to dump the garbage from our souls. Oh yes, it's there! And silence helps us admit our sins, encourages us to get rid of them.
Quietly, we confess our sins to God. As Proverbs says, "No one who conceals transgressions will prosper, / but one who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy" (Proverbs 28:13).
Silence nourishes meditation on the Word. Our souls grow by digesting the Word. As Matthew says in his Gospel, "One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4).
Reading the Word is vital to spiritual growth. When we taste the Word, we feed our souls. But for the souls to grow we must digest God's Word. It is the life blood of our souls. It reaches our souls through the discipline of silence.
In silence the Word takes hold in our hearts. It soaks into our hearts through prayer. Then we understand. As spiritual writer Thomas Moore has said in his book Caring for the Soul, "Through the discipline of silence, we understand and come near the truth."
Understanding links all things together. It connects God and self. It links the past and the present, the present and the future, the present and the eternal until we come to see everything from an eternal vantage point.
Silence is a friend of God. Silence is God's gift to deepen our love and friendship. When we talk a lot, love seems to be absent. But when we come together face to face, we sense a mystical feeling of love.
Be still and know...
