Keep on keeping on...

Related to keeping a rule is maintaining the balance between attachment and detachment, between activity and reflection. It is probably fair to say that, without an intentional focus on maintaining such a balance, most of us will end up out of balance most of the time... The fact is, most of us are too heavily weighted on the side of attachment. Necessary periods of self-reflective "space" are largely missing. It is good to remind ourselves that what we are seeking to "claim" when we seek solitude is not an unworldly lifestyle as an alternative to our own but rather a balanced lifestyle, one in which the inner and the outer are in creative harmony.

How do we maintain such a balance in the face of constant intrusions? The answer is, we do what Jesus did: we keep working at it. There were times that Jesus withdrew to a "deserted place" to pray but was pursued by his disciples and the crowds. At such times Jesus responded to the human needs of the moment, telling the disciples, "let us go on to the neighbouring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do" (Mark 1:38). But afterward Jesus inevitably returned to the prayerful silence and solitude that renewed him...

If you experience solitude as a familiar rhythm, you will gradually strengthen your ability to experience a solitude of the heart regardless of your external circumstances. Even in the midst of active engagement, you will be able to enter into a silent space inside yourself.

From Solitude: A Neglected Path to God by Christopher C. Moore (Cowley Publications, 2001) with thanks to Vicki K Black.

I so need to hear Moore's comment about "keep working at it". Whatever rule we follow, whatever discipline of prayer we undertake, we will be interrupted, derailed, taken away from it by the needs and wants of the world around us and its people. And so we should be. We cannot be holier and more spiritual than Jesus - but we can be grumpier and more unloving! But allowing ourselves to be called away is not a reason to give up on the whole enterprise of solitude, or of a discipline of prayer. The enemy will of course suggest it should be - but we have our Saviour to turn to, and his example with which to confront our tempter. Ultimately, it is in his mercy, by his grace, that we can pray at all.