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Lamentations :

“It is good to hope in silence for the saving help of the Lord. Let him sit alone and in silence, when it is laid upon him.”

Into my normally peaceful life has come chaos both internal and external. I endeavour to live as quiet and peacefully as I can. I do this by choice and as an adjustment to personal circumstance. It is in this silence that my soul can come to rest. It is here that I can pray, here that I can think, here that I can dwell on the things of God.

In writing this book not only is self discipline required but also external circumstance that lead to quietness and periods of silence. I have been in a chaos of external events and this in turn has reduced my mental state to that of a loud fairground. Even Mass or sitting before the Blessed Sacrament has been less than helpful. My mind would not still in these moments and along with a sense of guilt came a sense of failure. I cried out or perhaps more accurately the Spirit cried out for me to the Father and at last I came to healing silence before God and with that came peace.

I felt compelled to share this because it is important that we learn to see the absolute importance of finding solitude. Then and only then are we able to sit in the schoolroom and be taught by Our Lord and Master. For ten days I have lived in chaos and it is an emptying experience like being in the desert and lacking water.

For me this will be a short respite but I am here now in total silence. Not a sound. Here I can listen to the heartbeat of God, can rest awhile in the sacred Heart of Jesus. Finally I had to make the choice to settle here, to get rid of all distractions and focus on the Lord. The chance was offered and I could so easily have wasted this precious time.

“Let him sit alone and in silence, when it is laid upon him.” So it is for me. Perhaps it is not the path for everyone but is most certainly my path. I may be trying to help you to learn how how to see with all its many levels of meaning but of course I can only share with you what I myself have learned. What is helpful to me may not be helpful to you. Only the Lord can speak to you. If my words are a vehicle that work as a conduit for His word to you then that is wonderful. But I am only a fellow traveller on this road. We have come together to share part of the, it is no more than that, and here I have shared with you my own adventures on this spiritual road we travel. Soon our ways will part and we will go our separate ways. It was ever thus, be glad for those times when paths cross and we can learn from one another as we share our experiences of the road and our own precious insights into the Christian journey.