Ouachita Stories

In part 1 of Resting Well, we shared how students can begin to plan for the break between semesters. Below, read more from a few Ouachita faculty and staff.

Judy Duvall, Elrod Center for Family & Community:

One of the best things for my soul especially after a busy and trying season is to experience solitude and silence with God without any agenda or distraction.  This is not easy as I want to talk and plan and direct my life and the lives of others.  But in stillness before God for an extended time, I have the opportunity to experience God’s great love for me and His direction for my life.  A couple books I would recommend are Solitude and Silence and Invitation to Retreat by Ruth Haley Barton.

Ray Franklin, Christian Studies:

Take a half-day of prayer. Spend four hours alone with just you and Jesus. This can be totally by yourself—like by a lake, in a woods, near a field, or on a mountain. Or you can do the “alone-in-a-crowd” thing—like in a park, a shopping mall, or a library. Take your Bible (a real, paper and ink one). Turn off your phone. And be still before the Lord until He comes to you. The rest is up to you and the prompting of the Spirit. Read, pray, praise, cry, cry out—whatever the Lord puts in your heart to do. You will be glad you did.

Sue Poole, Counseling Services:

I recommend The Gift of Being Yourself: The Sacred Call to Self-Discovery by David G. Benner.  It’s short (about 100 pages) with chapter by chapter study guide in the back for reflection.  Benner quotes Thomas Merton in the opening cover page of his book, “There is only one problem on which all my existence, my peace, and my happiness depend: to discover myself in discovering God.  If I find Him I will find myself and if I find my true self I will find Him.