The Lily Letters

The art of Solitude Psalms 23:1-3 “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.[a] He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness[b] for his name's sake.” Back in January, I had the most spontaneous idea ever. I decided to book a hotel room away from my parents for the weekend for Valentine's day. This specific resort may or may not have been next to my house. During that weekend I was able to reflect and hear more from God and also relax from being busy with my job and school. There were different times where Jesus took time alone to pray and to spend time with God. This introduced the spiritual discipline of solitude, where we intentionally withdraw ourselves from our daily routines to focus on God. Richard J. Foster states that Solitude can help: 1. Free us from distractions 2. Find our true selves 3. Communicate with God 4. Develop Hope. Some simple ways we can practice solit...

We all struggle with spiritual discouragement and lethargy. Some days our circumstances threaten to overwhelm us, and we struggle just to pray. Many times we just don’t feel like doing the things we know we should. For one reason or another, God sometimes seems far off and unreachable. David faced times like these in his life. The Psalms are filled with verses that express his despair and feeling of abandonment. Yet the Psalms also give us the key to living victoriously during the dark periods of life. Let’s take a quick look at Psalm 119:89-95*. “Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven. Your faithfulness continues throughout all generations; You established the earth, and it stands. They stand this day according to Your ordinances…” My circumstances or feelings have not changed God. He is the same God today as He was when He hung the stars in the sky, led the Israelites through the Red Sea , and fed the five thousand. “For all things are Your servants…” All things, ...