The Quiet Ones

“For they do not speak peace, but they conceive deceitful words against those who are quiet in the land” (Ps. 35:20).

Hermits should be “those who are quiet in the land.” For they live in solitude and hiddenness. They do what the Apostle Paul said:

“But we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more, to aspire to live quietly, to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we directed you, so that you may behave properly toward outsiders and be dependent on no one” (1 Thess. 4:10-12).

Lead a Quiet Life

Hermits aspire “to live quietly.” For they have retired from social interactions to dedicate their lives to being with God. And so they “mind” their “own affairs.” They do not get entangled in the affairs of others.

Quiet Ones Beware

But it is the quiet ones that the devil fears the most. They are harder to distract, harder to lead astray by outward means. He must use more cunning tactics. He must get them distracted by their own selfish tendencies, their own lusts and desires.

Quiet ones beware. “Discipline yourselves; keep alert. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour” (1 Pet. 5:8).

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, who is in heaven,
hallowed be Your name;
Your kingdom come;
Your will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass
against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For Yours is the kingdom,
The power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.

Lightly edited

Idleness is an Enemy

“Idleness is the enemy of the soul: and therefore the brethren ought to be employed in manual labor at certain times, at others, in devout reading.” – St. Benedict of Nursia (The Rule of St. Benedict)

Prayer and work was the ideal for the Benedictine monk. But it also applies to The hermit. The hermit also should alternate between prayer and work. For idleness is the enemy of the soul.

Even after retirement, one should find work to do, whether working on a garden or volunteering at a soup kitchen. For the rhythm of life includes rest and work, action and inaction. It is the work that enriches the rest.

Walk Alone

You are born alone, and you die alone. Yet, how we fight against this reality.

Before you begin a deeper walk with God, know that that walk will be a lonely one. The closer you get to God, the further you’ll be from people.

Leonard Ravenhill said it well:

Great eagles fly alone; great lions hunt alone; great souls walk alone-alone with God. Such loneliness is hard to endure, and impossible to enjoy unless God accompanies them. Prophets are lone men; they walk alone, pray alone and God makes them alone.

Bible as the Voice of the Church

The Bible is the voice of the Church, not the voice of God. By that I mean that God spoke to the Church, the Christian community, and then the Christian community wrote down their experiences.

The Church Created the Bible

The church created the Bible, the Bible did not create the church. Far too many Christians are Bible-centered rather than God-centered. The Church chose the 27 books to be on the New Testament, because there was a general consensus that these books accurately betrayed the nature and character of God, and our relationship with him.

Not an Answer Book

People are under the illusion that God wants to give us answers. God does not want to give us answers, he wants to develop our souls and minds. That requires us to do our own struggles. Just like muscles, the mind is developed by using it and disciplining it.

God allows us to doubt, because doubt is part of growing “in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 3:18). This entails growing pains. You will know the truth, and yhe truth will make you very uncomfortable.