Silence is the portal to peace beyond understanding.
(Listen to my song “Turn Off the Noise” on YouTube by clicking HERE)
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Matthew 6:6
“But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.”
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We like to barrage God with our requests…and that’s okay.
But when Jesus was asked specifically how to pray…he instructed us to go to our inner room.
And then he went on to say, “In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him (Matthew 6:7-8).”
So…it would appear that silence speaks volumes.
As 16th century mystic John of the Cross said, “God’s first language is silence.”
13th and 14th century mystic Meister Eckhart said, “There is a language so beautiful that it is never spoken. There is a deep sort of silence that may never adequately fall into words. That, I tell you, is more valuable than any jewel or any diamond.”
Personally, I was never taught anything about this. When I was growing up, I was only taught rote, recited prayers…which seems oddly contradictory to what Jesus taught!
I have since found great peace and direction from my times of silence with God.
It’s the practice of letting go…or dying to self.
Jesus put it this way: “Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit (John 12:24).”
He also said, “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it (Matthew 10:39).”
Contemplative prayer is like finding a treasure hidden in plain sight…available to everyone who closes their eyes and listens.
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Listen to the song of the day “Turn Off the Noise” on the Listen to Your Heart album by clicking HERE.
Stream and/or purchase my songs on iTunes by clicking HERE.
Remember…God loves you!
Bill Tonnis Ministries 