FIRMLY PLANTED ◽ ENCOURAGEMENT
Where shall the Word be found, where will the word resound? Not here, there is not enough silence...
These words, written by T.S. Elliot in his poem Ash-Wednesday, speak to me loudly. Solitude and silence are as vital to my well-being as air and water. Nature sounds--birds chirping, water bubbling-do not disturb the silence; rather, they enhance it. They plug me into the natural world where God’s splendor rests in every leaf stirred by the wind, and when I’m plugged in, I’m called to pray.
Complete silence is rare, at least where I live. The world around us is filled with noise: mowers and weed-eaters, revving motorcycles, a passing airplane, someone’s loud music, the incessant television. Some noise we can shut off; some we have no control over. Early in the morning before the noise of the work-day begins is my favorite. It beckons me to rise, to listen and pray. The Word, the quiet Word that lights my way, is more easily heard in silence.
Walking the garden in the low morning light, I wonder: What is the purpose of this prayer garden? Is it simply a meeting place for us, God? Surely, it’s meant to be shared? I’ve offered it up over and over, asking him to have his way and give me clear signs. I’ve learned to wait, to trust more, and to pray—to be instead of do. In his time, in his way, not mine. Truthfully, my introversion is an obstacle that he will have to work around, like Moses’ reluctance to speak. That’s why spending time with him is so important and why I’m drawn to prayer—our means of communion and communication.
I’ve collected many thought-provoking quotes on prayer. Here is just a sampling:
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Prayer is the living interactive relationship we have with God about what He and I are working on together. (Richard Foster)
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Prayer is not a means of removing the unknown and unpredictable elements in life, but rather a way of including the unknown and unpredictable in the outworking of God’s grace in our lives. (Ray Anderson)
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Prayer is keeping company with God. (Philip Yancey)
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A man prayed, and at first, he thought that prayer was talking. But he became more and more quiet until in the end he realized that prayer is listening. (Soren Kierkegaard)
That was just an appetizer. Chew slowly and savor.
The real meat is the Word of truth the Lord has ordained for you, obtained through prayer. It will become a part of your being. I have been transformed by spending time with God in prayer. Even so, it often feels like I’m not praying “right,” or “enough,” or I’m not fully attentive and engaged. I’m distracted by trivialities, my thoughts wander, I start a prayer and then my mind goes somewhere else. But as my pastor friend Jack suggests, I pray as I can, not as I can’t. God does the work. One of my favorite theologians says there is no prayer in heaven. There will be no need because we’ll be in his presence. Here, the Kingdom of Heaven is present, yet hidden, and so we must pray. There is no perfect way to pray, no right way to pray. So “pray as you can, not as you can’t.”
As I move about the garden working, wondering, or just gazing, things come to mind and I hold them up before Jesus. Names and situations are spoken out from the depths. Sometimes I don’t have the words; I let the Spirit pray. In silence my heart cries out, and in silence the Word resounds.