A lesson you can use from my “almost a month” in northern MN

For most of this month I have been staying in a house about four-five hours from my home. It was an interesting experience for me. I had scheduled all of my speaking up that direction so I was still spending time preaching. I had a few goals for my time up there. First, I am working on my third book so this was some time for writing. Second I am working on what I am calling the “Clear the bookshelf challenge.” For about a year now I have been working through the books on my bookshelf with the idea that I wanted to read each book completely, or just get something out of it, or give it away. This time in northern MN was some extra reading time. The third goal was an experiment in solitude.

Now it wasn’t exactly solitude, but it had some elements that I wanted to test. First, my time online would be limited since the house did not have Wi-Fi. I had internet through my phone but needed to watch my data use. Other than my preaching I only had one appointment while I was up there. The first week I would spend by myself. The second week my daughter would join me, and the last week and half my wife and mother in law would be there.

There were various lessons learned, but one of the most important ones is that solitude helps us learn to trust God. Before I went up there I was reminded of the quote by Richard Foster: “Solitude helps us resign as CEO of the universe.” I have a matching challenge fundraiser going on for the ministry for the summer, but I have to trust that God will do in two months what I am not sure can be done in three. Allowing a space for silence is letting God speak for you.

[tweetthis]Solitude helps us resign as CEO of the Universe.-Richard Foster[/tweetthis]

Not that I am never to speak again, I am writing this post after all. But stepping back gave me time to let God take the lead. It is easy as a “follower” of Jesus to guess where He is going and try to get there before He does.

Many of you wouldn’t need to get away for three and a half weeks to be reminded of this important lesson. Maybe an hour of silence would be a challenge. How about a short walk without your cell phone? As I gave him space not only did He teach me trust, but He filled that space with an awareness of His love and presence. Will you experiment with solitude in your life?

Some opportunities you just have to jump on!

I hope that you enjoy the posts that come your way. Would you join the team to make a difference in prayer around the world. We have a generous donor that has agreed to match any new monthly supporters of the ministry for the first year up to $500 a month. This challenge only last this summer so we need your help to make it happen. Every little bit helps (and is doubled) Would you email me at kevinccadmin_wp@gmail.com to let me know what you would do? Or learn how to give at http://christconnection.cc/donate/ . Thanks so much!

How to Pray: Enjoying Your Time With Jesus (Updated)

My wife and I are so cool that we chose a family theme song. The song we picked was an old Quaker song: Tis a Gift to be Simple. It is a great reminder to me when I want to make things more complicated than they need to be. Simplicity is also a great thing for a prayer life. Often when I am introducing my speaking ministry to pastors I tell them that my ministry is to speak to the person in the back row that thinks that prayer is intimidating. So with that in mind let me give you a short video I made a few years ago that we lost in “the crash” on how to start a prayer life.