The Place of Change
One of our persistent difficulties is that while we want help, we do not want to change. We are quite willing to go to God to ask for strength, but not so willing to ask for redirection. We are happy to be encouraged, but not to be converted. In doing this we are making the fatal assumption that we are okay in what we are doing and in our priorities; all we lack is adequate resources. And so we turn to God in prayer asking for more grace, more of His Spirit, and more of His power. Even in our search for solitude and inner peace, we are frequently motivated by the idea that we are simply looking to find greater inner energies in order to carry on with our own agendas. Nouwen, however, reminds us that the place of solitude “is not a private therapeutic place . . . it is the place of conversion.” It is not the place where we recharge our spiritual batteries and then continue to live as we have lived before. It is not the place where we catch our breath in order to madly reenter the race. It is not the place where we simply find some quietness before we plunge into the world with its babble of voices. The place of solitude is where we are changed. It is the place where we abandon some of our agendas, where we acknowledge our compulsions, where we discover new directions, and where, more importantly, we find a new self.
—Charles Ringma, Dare to Journey with Henri Nouwen
We often want God’s help without truly wanting change. We ask for strength and encouragement, but hope to keep our same plans and priorities. Even in seeking peace or solitude, our goal can be to “recharge” just enough to return to life as usual. But Henri Nouwen reminds us—true solitude is not for escape, but for conversion.
In God’s presence, we are invited to lay down our agendas, face our inner compulsions, and open ourselves to His redirection. Solitude becomes the place where we are reshaped, where we discover new paths, and where we meet our truest self—formed and renewed by His love. —DH
—David Hoskins, Founder & Care Guide, Sanctuary Clinics