Time with God

The first four pictures are of the Seven fountians where we had solitude time. The last gazebo is on Payap campus right next to the Zone, it is the main place to go to for our hour of quiet time every day.

Everyday during our equipping time we spend one hour of quiet or solitude time. I have really come to where I look forward to this time alone with God everyday and don't feel quite at peace without it. At times I don't feel as close to God on the weekends because I don't set that time aside for him. I find that being alone with God gives me strength, clarity and peace for my life. It brings a new energy to my day and also helps me to get ride of any negative thoughts or bad attitudes. I have learned a lot about myself during this time. I've come to understand myself on a new level, like what bothers me, what makes me upset or what brings me joy. Another big part of my solitude this summer has been healing. Bringing all my concerns, worries and frustrations before God and letting him take them from me. This healing has brought a whole new level of clarity to my life. As I have mentioned before, we have been talking about and practicing lots of different spiritual disciplines this summer. This past Wednesday we went to this Catholic place called "Seven Fountains" and had a few hours of solitude time. You are not aloud to talk, bring cell phones or make any noise at this place. We walked in to find this wonderful little chapel, beautiful gardens and this large park area with huge trees and cute little gazebos. For the first part I walked through this small maze shaped garden sevral times and just talked to God. I then went to the large park area and just sat on a bench for the rest of the time. I love just sitting in God's beautiful creation and just soaking in every part of Him, if that makes sense. Before coming to Thailand I think I would have not been very excited about spending three hours in solitude and I even think it would have been difficult for me. Now I desire this solitude time and found that it is one of the most fulfilling and relaxing things I've ever done.

I know I've rambled on a lot but this is something that has been every important to me and helped me to grow so much closer to God. If you haven't ever spent time in solitude with God... try it and I know God will bless you in that experience.

One more week left in Chiang Mai. The closer it gets to us leaving the sadder I get about leaving and the more excited I get about going home, which doesn't make a lot of sense I realize. We have a good bye retreat this weekend and then we will pack up and say our goodbyes on Thursday. Friday through Tuesday we will be in Phuket, which is a island right off the coast of Thailand. I'm looking forward to this mini vacation before heading back home. I think it will be a great time of relaxation and reflection before coming back and jumping into the busyness of life back home.