I can’t really remember the year of my first Advent Retreat of silence. It was many years ago… Perhaps 2002? I was invited by a group called “Hungry Souls” and was led by Sibyl Towner and Karen Mains. I remember being nervous about the silence. Would I get bored? I imagined being in a group of a few dozen women and all the sudden needing to “shout out loud” to break the quiet. I had many questions. As much as I was nervous, when I arrived at the retreat center… everything was right in place. Karen and Sibyl gently guided us into the silence. We were given instructions along the way… so even in the quiet… no one was ever alone.
Since that first retreat, I have tried to keep the practice of two overnight retreats of silence every year – one around Easter during Lent and the other during Advent as Christmas approaches. I try to have a day of silence a month as a part of my own spiritual rhythm. Some months I am more successful than others!
This year… I am particularly thankful to enter into quiet that awaits. I am at a retreat center – Pendle Hill – somewhere in Pennsylvania. The year has been a busy one. The holidays are busy too. As I begin to settle my heart… I enter with anticipation into the silence. My prayer – for myself and others – is that we might all have some quiet to reflect upon the true purpose of the Advent Season. I am reminded of what it must have been like for the early church… awaiting the coming of the Messiah. We, too, must wait. We wait upon the Lord to hear the cries of our hearts. We wait… We wait also for Him to return again… that in His coming, the world might again be made right.
These are the Scriptures upon which I will meditate as I enter into this year’s retreat into silence:
Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10)
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly (Psalm 5:3)
We wait in hope for the Lord, he is our help and our shield (Psalm 33:20)
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:16)
And there were shepherds living out in fields nearby, keeping watch over their flock by night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.” (Luke 2:8-11)
Dear Mae,
I was moved to read your blog this morning when I again found where I had bookmarked it some time ago. It touches me deeply to read your work and to know how many lives you are impacting through your writing and your speaking. In this blog you say you don’t remember when you first were a part of a silent retreat, but I remember you writing about doing that when you would visit your aunt(?) when you were just in middle school. Even as a sometimes giddy middle school girl, you were marked for special things. Over the years as I would reflect on special students who had been in my classroom, your name was always at the top as one I knew would be amazing. I doubt I had another student in all my 30 years of teaching who was as much a seeker of knowledge and wisdom as you are. You have left those of us who were your early teachers in the dust and now as I have the time, I will run along behind and follow as God is leading you to such exciting and important work.
We have been blessed with a second grandchild– a son, Parker Lee Ayres Bowlin was born Feb 23 and we have spent quite a bit of time in Richmond with them. We will travel to France in May for 9 days with the Gibsons and then spend 3 weeks in Alaska in July. My husband had major shoulder surgery so our summer will be spent with him continuing physical therapy so we hope he can regain his ability to run his chain saw and take the grandchildren fishing– the things he loves to do. I continue to dabble at painting and do a lot of reading. My personal “ministry” is mainly in the form of letters of encouragement to friends and family who are suffering in some way. Nothing like the scope of your work but it’s what I can do in my own little circle.
I will pray for you work daily. I feel honored that I was one also touched by you.
Love,
Sally