Being With Jesus: Solitude and SilenceSample

Solitude Is A Gift To Our Community

Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, said, “you are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house." (‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭ESV)‬‬

As "the light of the world," we should not hide the inward transformation in our souls from our public lives. Henry Nouwen once wrote, "what we live in the most intimate places of our beings is not just for us but for all people. That is why our inner lives are lives for others. That is why solitude is a gift to our community, and that is why our most secret thoughts affect our common life."

Our inner lives need the strength found in true community to keep our light burning bright. Likewise, our communities need us to bring our gift born out of solitude to "give light to all in the house." We should not be people living double lives.

Are you one person in private and a different person in public?

If so, remove the "bushel basket" hiding your lamp so that the world around you can see the light of Christ burning bright inside of you.