Day Nine

My Soul in Silence Waits

Practice Note

Meditation: <listen>

For God alone my soul in silence waits.
—Psalm 62:1

Living with illness often offers us silence. We may become home-bound when formerly we went to a workplace. We may experience the particular silence of a hospital at night, when other persons are dying just down the hall. We may discover that our prayer inclines more and more toward silence, for our speech cannot carry the weight of our experience.

Thomas Keating, Trappist monk and teacher of centering prayer, has said that “silence is God’s first language.” If you find yourself being drawn toward silence and stillness in prayer, trust that longing. Our tradition offers the wisdom that at our deepest core, we abide in the rich, creative silence of God. At our deepest core, beyond the daily realities of the illness, Christ dwells in you and you dwell in Christ. In that space within, where your embodied life is grounded and rooted in Love, the silence of Mercy awaits.

Today, take the time to choose silence and stillness. Take the time to rest in the God who creates you at this moment and who will receive you at your end. Allow yourself to rest in the silence of this Presence who will never leave you and will ever be your friend.

Grant me, gracious God, the space and time to rest in You, to know your presence in silence and to know your love that makes me, keeps me and receives me. Amen.

Practice: <listen>

A regular practice of silent resting prayer is supported by finding the place that will allow you to inhabit the silence. This could be a chair, or your bed, or a  place outside. You may know immediately which place will allow you to step into a practice of silence. Or you may need to try out different places to see  how they feel.

Once you have found the place, try to allow yourself to sit or lie quietly.

Allow your attention to rest on the rhythm of your breath. This kind of silence is akin to that moment just before sleep descends—a kind of letting go, a kind of entrusting. If you become drowsy, don’t worry about it. This silence is set  aside for us to remember what it is to rest in the presence of God. This silence is not focused attention.

Breathe and rest.

If you need words, just say, “Thank  You,” and leave it at that.

Return to silent resting prayer as often as you wish.