Sunday 5th July 2020 - Silence and Solitude

Holy Habits for Kids - an intro…

Holy Habits 1 - Silence and Solitude


Worship:

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Word:

Talk about when your house is silent.  Is it ever completely silent?  Talk about what solitude means - being alone with your own thoughts.  Ask your child(ren); Do you think that being silent and having time on your own is important?  Why?  How does being quiet and on your own make you feel?

Many of our homes are full of noise and distraction!  It is rare that there isn’t music or TV or a game or battery-operated toys or crying or laughter etc etc.  However, we see in the Bible that silence is important. 

 Silence was used by God in the Bible to create a space in which to show His power.  For example, when the people of God entered the promised land, they were directed to take the city of Jericho.  The battleplan included the soldiers marching around the city every day for six days in silence!  This is an unusual form of attack!  On the seventh day, they broke their silence (shouting loudly), and the walls of Jericho fell.  God used silence to build faith and to show His power.  (Joshua 6)

 Silence and solitude (time to be quiet and alone with God the Father) was also important to Jesus.  We see in the gospels that it says on numerous occasions that Jesus went to a solitary or lonely place on his own to pray.  With older children, look up some examples - Mark 1: 35, Luke 5: 16, Matthew 14: 23.  Talk together about why Jesus needed to do this.

 Explain that even as adults, many people find it hard to make time to be silent and to choose to be alone with God.  Talk about how it is something that we can practise, as a holy habit, and that as we practise it, we will get better at being comfortable with the quiet and the space and the stopping doing things.  God wants us to learn to be silent and to simply enjoy being in His presence. 

A few things to encourage your child(ren) to wonder about:

- I wonder how you feel about being quiet, really quiet, alone with God?

- I wonder why God wants you to give Him your full and undivided attention (even for a short time)?

- I wonder whether you will learn to hear from God in the quiet?

Activity Suggestions:

All ages:

Find a space where you can hide away for a little time!  Or build a den in the corner of your room! 

See if you can sit quietly on your own for just a few minutes and enjoy the quiet.  Try to open your spiritual ears and to listen to see if God wants to say anything to you. 

You might want to take a piece of paper and some crayons and just draw whatever comes into your mind - this picture can be like a prayer; allow God to direct your crayons!

Extra things for 7-11’s to try: 

1)

  • Choose a verse or two of scripture to think/reflect on (a couple of suggestions to get you started - Psalm 100: 5 / Jeremiah 29: 11 / Proverbs 3: 5-6). 

  • Read or say the verse out loud a few times, repeat it. 

  • Then just sit quietly and meditate (think about / focus your mind) just on those few words.

  •   Listen with your spiritual ears and see what God is saying through these words. 

  • Turn the words over and over in your mind. 

  • Sit quietly and listen for God. 

  • You might want to start with just a couple of minutes one day and then try to add another minute on as you repeat this on different days.


2) If you find sitting still and being quiet difficult - try a ‘breath prayer’. 

  • Start by taking a couple of deep breaths. 

  • Breathe in deeply, hold, then breathe out slowly (like you do in cool-down at the end of PE at school).  Practise a couple of times.  

  • Then as you breathe in,  think “Be Still and Know.” 

  • Breathe out thinking, “That I am God.”

  • Breathe this breath prayer up to 10 times. Breathe slowly, taking your time, there is no rush. 

  • Some things to think about:

What do you notice right now?
How easy is it for God to get your attention?
In what ways has God been inviting you just to be with him?

Reflection:

As well as encouraging your child(ren) to have a few moments of silence and solitude on their own, why not see if you can build up moments of silence together as a family?  This could be made fun using a timer on your phone or an egg timer etc.  Share together any senses of what God is saying.  If any of you find it almost impossible to be still, try holding an object (a pebble or a small cuddly toy) which can become a prop to help focus the mind on being still and quiet with God, enjoying His presence.

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