Sunday Seven....Silence and Solitude

Sunday Seven....Silence and Solitude

(Sunset...used by permissions from friend and fabulous photographer Beckie Fitzgerald ...she captures the beauty of our rural area, better than anyone I know!)

1. Lately I've been thinking about silence and solitude....probably because I'm seldom silent and never alone. We work at a mission and people are popping in all the time . Being interrupted from a task is an everyday occurrence and seen as "just part of the ministry". I confess that there are days that I'm burned out from being around people. I miss the beauty of a sunset that God paints every single evening whether I am there to observe it or not. I miss being still and quiet before God to find out what He wants to tell me. I'm quite good at telling Him how I think a certain situation should play out and suggesting possible outcomes but not so good at being quiet and really listening. I am reminded in scripture how time after time, Jesus would slip away to a quiet place to pray. With Ipod's, radios, cell phones, TV and surround sound....we are never silent and as such, seldom take time to think or reflect .

I had a bad case of laryngitis that lasted for a entire week, several years ago. Mr. Wonderful laughed and called it a auditory vacation for him. I couldn't whisper or even squeak, (imagine Daisy totally mute for a week! ) I learned that I talk a lot and but seldom say anything of importance. I learned that the world got along quite well without my advice or observations. I learned to be more observant of people and my surroundings. I learned that people really want to be heard and can figure out their own problems if allowed to voice them out loud to some one else without fear of being criticized or laughed at. I also learned that nodding , really focusing on the person (rather than multitasking) or a simple "hmmm?" was enough to acknowledge that yes, I had indeed heard what that person had said, but did not mean that I totally agreed with what they said. When the week was over, I think my family was some what disappointed that I could speak again. They missed the attention and focus just on them.

I'm hoping this week to practice deliberate silence and solitude. I tend to complain when overwhelmed. These are some areas that overwhelmed me this past week.

2. This is my friend Sandy. She came and worked with me on Friday in the Medical room. We are going through all the donated medical items and boxing them up to send to other ministries. We have so much unsorted medical that I am totally overwhelmed by it all and can have "job security" till Jesus comes again. Please pray for ministries that will accept it unsorted. We need to move it out to where it can be used.



3. This is the "down time" at our mission which means it is the time of year where we work the hardest. We are going through inventory, reorganizing, and throwing away items that have no value. We want to utilize items that are good and serviceable but our motto is "NO JUNK FOR JESUS!" We were called this week by a person wanting to donate a computer that had been hit by lightening and didn't work, to use for overseas ministries. Did they really think that the boat ride would "heal" it?



4. We had a group that came in Saturday for 3 hours. They put labels on our children's chewable vitamins. They come in bottles of 1000 and we have a local printer make up the labels. Having volunteers to put the labels on saves us on the overall cost. We ordered over a million and half vitamins. We are thankful for the help but I did miss having a day off.


5. During this time of reorganizing ....we are boxing up like items. It is time consuming and tiring. The boxes are heavy and in my way and I come home really dirty, tired, and spent. Poor Mr. Wonderful gets pulled away so often I really even hate to ask him for help.




6. As you can see the gym is overly filled with items that need to be sorted, moved, or just thrown away. It is so visually overwhelming that it is difficult to function and move around. This is probably the reason my spirit is longing for solitude.




7. I'm guarding my heart this week from anger, frustration and complaining. Valentine's Day is all about hearts so it is a good reminder. My Mr. Wonderful (my heart throb) is having a birthday this week on Friday.

Well, that's how my week went. It was really hard but I did see some good changes take place. I'm enjoying my day of solitude and silence....no TV, radio's or noise. I'm looking forward to some nap time this afternoon. Hope your week was good and continues to be. Till next week.....