In a desert land he found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; he guarded him as the apple of his eye. Deuteronomy 32:10
“To live the life of the solitary is to make a conscious decision for ‘aloneness’ with God and my additional vow of solitude seeks to make concrete my desire for God which becomes the foundation of my active ministry as the contemplative and the active influence and feed each other.”
Amma Sue SCL as recounted in What Do You Seek? Wisdom from Religious Life for Today’s World by John-Francis Friendship (Norwich: Canterbury Press, 2021) 38.
Today’s Scripture paints a beautiful picture. God finds us in hard places and shields and cares for us because of His great love for us. The contemplative goes to those places to experience God and to gain insight for serving the active.
I’ve often said that I like to be alone. I like the aloneness I enjoyed on a flight yesterday, and the aloneness in the peacefulness of my hotel room. Solitude is the gateway to my most important relationship, time with God.
The role of the contemplative is grow deep in God and, having done so, to influence and feed the active. That may be you. You have an active ministry, and you read these posts for inspiration. If so, soak in today’s Scripture.
Revel in God’s great love and care for you. And if you are the contemplative, sit with God in solitude to experience Him in a powerful way and go serve the active ones around you. Be filled in order to pour out to others generously.
And if you are an active person, interact with the contemplative to grow in your faith and support him or her generously so that, in community, you can both grow in relationship to God and navigate the challenges of life together.