Solitude, community, and ministry…

Solitude, community, and ministry…

“Let him who cannot be alone beware of community... Let him who is not in community beware of being alone... Each by itself has profound perils and pitfalls. One who wants fellowship without solitude plunges into the void of words and feelings, and the one who seeks solitude without fellowship perishes in the abyss of vanity, self-infatuation and despair.”― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together

If we follow Jesus’ pattern, fruitful life flows from cycles of solitude, community, and ministry. We need all three to effectively love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength and to love your neighbor as yourself. (Mark 12:30-31)

We need authentic community now more than ever. But we need community that flows from and is fed by a living bond with Jesus rather than just our own opinions and agenda. Ministry will be the natural fruit of healthy community that is formed by growing connections with God. Whether it is pulling away from the “to do” list to savor a few quiet moments, a walk outside to think and pray, a daily time with the Word, or an extended period to clear the cobwebs, we need to build serenity into our noisy lives.

"Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." (Psalm 46:10)

Cease striving, stop fighting, be still, stand silent, step out of the traffic, whatever your version says… It literally means “drop your fur” as an animal relaxes his hackles when he knows it is safe. Some of us have had our fur up for a very long time.

When I seek God with others, I am strengthened in so many ways.

• Knowing I am not alone in my wonderful, weird, and wooly life.

• Having the encouragement and accountability of others who also love Jesus.

• Being reminded of God’s faithful and powerful hand as I hear the different ways God is guiding us.

• Seeing God pour his love out in such personal and individual ways.

• Gleaning nuggets of wisdom and insight from others.

• Having others faithfully hold my unique story as I hold theirs.

• Learning tools to experience intimacy with God.

At the Psalm One Refocus and Refuel Retreat, we spend time at Jesus’ feet alone together. Alone together? A contradiction in terms? No.

Have you ever intended to set aside a chunk of time to be with God and God alone? Has it ever dissipated or vanished by being crowded out by distractions or just drifting off track? When we seek God alone together, we form a small community of men and women intent on spending time at Jesus’ feet.

Many people fear silence and solitude, but it is not isolation. It is spending renewing time with the One who loves you more than you can ever imagine. As one colleague says, “Isolation is when you put yourself in a cage. Solitude is when you put all the distractions in a cage.” Far from being isolated, intentional silence and solitude is spending clarifying and strengthening time with the Beloved. It has become oxygen to my soul.

Our Refocus and Refuel is a “semi-silent” retreat. We open with time in the Word and heart preparation, close in time in the Word, prayer, and considering how God may be whispering and nudging. We talk and laugh over wonderful meals. I am available for spiritual direction if you are wrestling with how God might be leading you, if you want help in bringing an issue before the Lord, if you want to pray with someone, or you’re not sure how to connect with God. In between, however, we give one another the gift of silence so you can enjoy unhurried, uninterrupted time of study, prayer, meditation on the Word, journaling, and resting in His presence.

It takes a while to dial down and become still enough to hear that still, small voice. It takes longer than a few minutes to let the whirlwind of my full life settle so I can truly see what is worth keeping, what should be weeded out, what treasures I may be missing. When the dust settles, I can see His light shining into every corner of my world. Priorities are reexamined, choices are reassessed, thoughts are taken captive, and God’s Word and voice come alive. 

• For more information and to register for the Cincinnati November 17-19 Refocus and Refuel Retreat: https://www.psalmone.org/refocus-and-refuel For men and women.

Too far from Cincinnati or can’t clear a weekend? Geography doesn’t stop us.

• For my friends Down Under: Lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise, I will be back in Australia and New Zealand in 2024. Interested in hosting a Refocus and Reuel Retreat, Day of Refreshing, Soul Care Retreat, other speaking, teaching, preaching, or ministry of any kind? Contact me and let’s see what God may have up His sleeve.

• Online Day of Refreshing! Yes, we miss the Days of Refreshing out among the woods and gardens of Oregonia. I know it’s not the same, but we will be having an online getaway soon. This means that men and women from anywhere—not just SW Ohio—can join us. Dates to be announced. Space is limited. Watch your email.

• Could you use some time in the Word and some encouragement to keep your head, heart, and hands following hard after God? Join us Tuesdays at 7:30pm ET for the Psalm One Bible Study. Join an encouraging, joyful community of men and women from all over the US and sometimes the other side of the planet. We are currently in Matthew and will begin a new book soon, but you are welcome to pop in anytime. To stay in the loop: https://www.psalmone.org/tuesday-night-bible-study

• I can’t do any of this without prayer support. If you would like to pray for Psalm One Ministries (and its director 😉), reply with “Prayer Team”. I need a team to listen, pray, and come along with me as God leads us.

May you find places to experience life-giving solitude, community, and ministry as we walk with Jesus.

Grace and peace,

Linda

Awesome. Not just some awe. Lots of awe.

I’ve been on a Prayer Pilgrimage…

What's a prayer pilgrimage? An extended, intentional, unhurried, uninterrupted time of prayer, contemplation on the Word, journaling, and resting at Jesus’s feet--preferably somewhere remote with more animals than humans. I occasionally need to be out of “ministry mode” for a prayer pilgrimage in order to be renewed for ministry.

“Silence your body to listen to words

Silence your tongue to listen to your thoughts

Silence your thoughts to listen to your heart beating

Silence your heart to listen to your spirit

Silence your spirit to listen to His spirit

In silence, you leave many to be with the One.”

Mama Maggie Gobran

This journey was in Alaska. Those of you who’ve been there know Alaska is stunning, spectacular, and larger than life. But I think the word that describes it for me is AWE.

We have diminished the word awe by calling everything awesome. Graeter’s ice cream is awesome (and it is). This shirt is awesome. That basketball game was awesome. Awesome parking space. Awesome new shampoo.

But genuine awe halts me when I see something that could only be the creation of God. I am immediately reminded that I am not in charge—and Someone else is. There is Someone far greater who sits on His throne, who is not forgetful, overwhelmed, or worried, or wringing his hands. As I wandered around Alaska with my Bible and journal, I was awestruck, stopped in my tracks by the work and presence of God. Moved to silence, stillness, tears, worship, confession, singing, celebration, even dancing (when no one could see me). Training to be attentive. To read about Jesus as I travel through His creation. To pour out my heart before God and record His whispers as I listen. To watch a bear by a stream or an enormous moose munching in the meadow. To befriend a 2500 pound stellar sea lion. To join the early morning bald eagles by the water. Everything points to a Creator and Redeemer. Everything points to the glory of God. This is what renews my soul. It leaves me in awe, being still and knowing that He is God.

Photography has become a powerful spiritual practice for me. Photos can never do justice to the splendor. Photos cannot capture the beauty of Alaska. But photography slows me down and helps me become attentive. I share photos with you in hopes that they might inspire awe, hope, joy, reverence, fun, smiles, beauty, and something of the reality of God.

These pilgrimages help bolster a genuine unshakable joy that gets me through the dark days, the hard times, the conflict, and splintering. I remember the moment on last year’s sabbatical when I looked in the mirror and realized the light had finally returned to my eyes. I have a lot of brothers and sisters right now whose light has been dimmed for so many different reasons. I want the light to return to our eyes. At the end of the sabbatical, I heard God saying the sabbatical is not over. Weave it into your life.

How do I keep following Jesus on this a long obedience in the same direction? Life can wear us down. This adventure was a spiritual shot in my arm, but life is not lived on the mountaintop. Walking with Jesus is 99% hidden, invisible, long-term, and ordinary. We need to build the things into our lives that will keep our heart alive no matter what hits it. I need rhythms and patterns of solitude, community, and ministry in my life. I personally need a prayer pilgrimage, a weekly Sabbath, spiritual practices that fuel my soul, and friends with whom I can discuss the deep things of God.

Do you want any of these woven into your life? Join me.

• Could your soul use some feeding? Some rest? Do you need to let the dust settle? Come away with me to a beautiful and quiet setting in Cincinnati for the September 22-24 for a Refocus and Refuel Retreat. For Men and Women. More info and to register: https://www.psalmone.org/refocus-and-refuel  NOTE: I’ve been out of commission and running behind, so Early Bird pricing is extended until Monday, September 11th.

• Could you use some time in the Word and some encouragement to keep your head, heart, and hands following hard after God? Join us on Tuesdays: https://www.psalmone.org/tuesday-night-bible-study For Men and Women.

So grateful for my team on the prayer pilgrimage. Once again, thank you for coming along, for listening, and for praying.

Much love,

Linda

P.S. I am going to start selling some of my photos, so you will be able to hang one of your favorites on your wall. Let me know if you would like the details as soon as I get it set up.

My Alaskan friend warned me I might not see any wildlife at all. I only saw grizzly bears, black bears, moose, caribou, Dall sheep, goats, muskoxen, sandhill cranes, swans, beluga whales, harbor seals, orcas (Killer whales), bald eagles, stellar sea lions, tufted puffins, guillemots, willow ptarmigans, porcupines, horned puffins, cormorants, sea otters, humpback whales, Arctic ground squirrels, greater yellowlegs, and other assorted creatures.

A pair of cleats?

Been thinking a lot about what it means to be a paraclete, to need a paraclete, and to paraclete one another.

(Before I go any further, I apologize to all my Greek scholar friends as I anglicize “paraclete” as a noun and verb. I hope this doesn't cause you to twitch too much.)

Parakaleo: “to call to one’s side, exhort, console, comfort, encourage, alleviate grief, intercede, help.”

We immediately think of the word as used to describe the amazing Holy Spirit and everything He does in our lives. I love returning to the Farewell Discourse (John 14-17) as Jesus tells us about the essential Helper. But it is also the perfect description of how we live out the “one anothers” of Scripture.

How can I be a paraclete? What do I bring to the table? What fish and loaves can I contribute to the body of Christ and to a world in need? What gifts do I bring?  A lot of hungry seekers and new believers are trying to figure out what it means to know and follow Jesus. How can I come alongside and paraclete those who want to grow?

For many of us--both individually and in community--we are coming out of a rough period. Some people are deconstructing their faith. Some people are reconstructing their faith. Some people are doing some much-needed remodeling and tweaking. How can I be a friend who is willing to sit alongside someone’s wrestling on the roller coaster?

Coming alongside. Continually inviting and encouraging people to experience a closer connection to Jesus. Not pushing someone to fit my mold. Not dragging someone along who is not ready. Offering the “hug and slug” we all need to keep us from straying like sheep.

“We urge (paraclete) you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone.” (1 Thess 5:14)

Opening the Word, not to beat someone up with it, but to let God do the judging and nudging. Inviting people to taste and see that the Lord is good. We have been studying Matthew on Tuesday nights and I have learned so much from watching Jesus interact with people. If the people in the Bible study are learning a tenth of what I am, we will be changed.

“O magnify the LORD with me and let us exalt His name together.” (Psalm 34:3)

I am so blessed to be in community with people who support, encourage, and point me to Jesus. It's far too easy to slip into apathy and lose our focus. I keep saying it: We need one another. This life stuff can be challenging. Don’t try this alone.

“Therefore encourage (paraclete) one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.” (1 Thess 5:11)

Much love,

Linda

• The Cincinnati Refocus and Refuel Retreat is coming up soon--September 22-24. This is for Men and Women, anyone who desires a closer walk with Jesus. Everyone is welcome, but this getaway is especially worthwhile for those in ministry to pull away and make sure everything we're doing FOR God is OF God. Space is limited and the Early Bird rate ends September 7. For more information and to register: https://www.psalmone.org/refocus-and-refuel

• For friends Down Under: I will be returning to Australia and New Zealand to minister in 2024. If you are interested in sponsoring and hosting a Refocus and Refuel Retreat (48-hour soul care retreat), a Day of Refreshing (6-hour retreat), teaching, speaking, consulting, or other ministry for men and women, please contact me to discuss the possibilities.