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“Silence is an urgent necessity for us; silence is necessary if we are to hear God speaking in eternal silence; our own silence is necessary if God is to hear us” (Into the Silent Land: A Guide to the Christian Practice of Contemplation by Martin Laird, p.2).
In order to enter contemplation through the doorway of silence, Laird recommends using the Jesus Prayer or the prayer word. The most common form of the Jesus Prayer is “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.” The short form is the prayer word, “Jesus.”
Through contemplation, “union with God is not something we are trying to acquire; God is already the ground of our being” (ibid. p.4). We need to rest in God. Psalm 62 states, “. . . our heart is restless until it rests in you.” The contemplative silence quiets the mind. “As R. S. Thomas puts it ‘the silence holds with its gloved hand the wild hawk of the mind’” (ibid. p.23).
According to Laird, some things that lie in the silence are “metaphors of light,” “luminous darkness” and “the light of the mind.” One of my experiences of entering the silence is expressed in a poem I wrote specifically for this article.
Tread lightly into the silence
So the echo of your last step
Is the only sound
You hear
As all sound fades
Out of the dark
The silence blossoms
Into petals of golden light
“The doorway into the silent land is a wound” (ibid. p.117). Enter the silence through your wounds. And what if your wounds are blessings that turn you back to God? Christian singer, Laura Story, expresses this truth in some lyrics from her emotionally moving song, Blessings. This song is track number 5 on the CD, Blessings.
Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops?
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near?
What if trials of this life
Are Your mercies in disguise?
Photo Credit:
Modifications made by Spring Snow Publications.
Photo by Steve
I began reading your article with interest (because of the quote) and received such a blessing from it. Your “echo of your last step is the only sound you hear” is beautiful and made me long for the silence you were writing of. I’ve recently fallen in love with the Blessing song and will always remember your urging to “enter the silence through your wounds.”
Pamela recently posted..Prune me, Lord
Thank you for your gracious comment, Pamela.
I’m glad you like my article and my poem.
May God’s light grace your path into the silence.
Terry recently posted..Love Creates
Your blog was quite thought provocing. Many times I find it hard to just Be still and Know God. Thanks for sharing. Blessings, Debbie
Debbie recently posted..In The Storm
Thank you for your kind comment, Debbie.
I’m glad you find our blog articles worthy of contemplation.
Terry recently posted..Love Creates