Quiet Day
"God in Creation"
Saturday 10th March
10am to 1pm
at Thelveton Church
"Come," my heart said, "seek his face."
Your face, Lord, will I seek.
INTRODUCTION TO QUIET DAYS
A quiet day is an opportunity for refreshment in a calm, peaceful environment, with the chance to reflect, to grow spiritually, to just ‘be’, or simply to rest. A quiet day is for anyone at any time in their life. It is a day in which we can share some quiet times together and also have space to be quiet and reflect individually.
During a guided quiet day, we are led gradually and gently into quietness and stillness. After the freshness and movement of arrival, the day finds its own rhythm, gradually settling as our quiet and reflective state deepens. Even though words are used for worship, prayers and short talks, we find ourselves led towards reflection, meditation and inner quiet.
In welcoming, peaceful surroundings, with the emphasis on quiet times, reflection and prayer, we will find the space to pause, to step aside from our busy lives for a while, to leave behind the clamour that fills our minds, to discover room for reflection and growth. In the stillness, we are able to listen to the voice within.
In the times of silence, in which we open ourselves up to God – to receive, to listen, to be strengthened – we can sit quietly, or walk, or we can read, draw, write, paint. We find that the incessant chatter within us quietens down and allows us to settle into a deep and attentive stillness.
In her book ‘Listening to God’, Joyce Huggett suggests that ‘the busier you are, the more you should attempt to find God in everything, to stand in that still point with God where your looking becomes a beholding, your listening an attentive hearing, your touching a deep awareness, your tasting a silent savouring.’
We don’t actually need to do anything, certainly not to force anything, or to make anything ‘happen’. All we need to be prepared to do is ‘to be’ - to be open to God, to rest in him, to become immersed in God’s presence in peace.
Introductory quiet half-day at Thelveton
We are planning an introductory quiet half-day in this benefice, to be held in the peaceful, welcoming surroundings of Thelveton church and its grounds.
There will be welcome on arrival and an introduction to the plan for the morning, which will include periods of worship, prayer and quiet times for reflection.
The morning will be guided, so if you have never been on a quiet day, there is nothing to worry about or fear! Leaflets with suggested ways to use the silence will be provided, with prayers, readings, materials for creative use. You may not need these resources, simply spending the time as God leads you, but they are there to help, prompt, provide ideas if you are not used to ‘filling the silence’.
Jesus says to his disciples, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” (Mark 6:31)