Silence and Salvation

On Sunday at St. Mark’s we talked about the idea of being ‘saved by grace’, looking at Ephesians 2:1-10. The point was that ‘the Church’ is made of people who have been reconciled with God through the work of Jesus and their faith in him.

But we also thought about how to be ‘saved’ means to be reconciled with ourselves, with the true purpose that God made us for, and to be made whole again rather than being split into different parts and different ways of living. This problem can be hard to see a lot of the time, because while we are living a ‘divided’ life there are many things to enjoy and a lot of busyness that keeps us from becoming aware of how things really are in our hearts. This is why many people have argued that the practice of silence and reflection is a key part of our spiritual growth. When we are by ourselves and not ‘doing anything’, we are able to see more clearly the things that are driving us and keeping us from being what we should be – our thoughts, feelings, and habits.

A challenge for us today, then – to sit down for a few minutes and be quiet, and listen to ourselves. Do I have a simple and united heart, or are lots of things vying for my attention? This is a reminder to return to God for our healing and continuing ‘salvation’. He is always waiting for us when we come to him.

-Andrew-