Tip & Restaurant #5
The Ongoing 10 Tips for Staying Closer to Christ and 10 Favorite Indy Restaurants of Mine
Tip #5: Quiet Time
Spend quiet time with all the gadgets turned off: no phone, no TV, no internet, no IPads, no anything. Light a candle. Be still. Say nothing. Be like Elijah and listen so that you don’t miss God passing by. It says in 1 Kings 9: 11 – 13 from The Message version of the Bible:
“Then Elijah was told, “Go, stand on the mountain at attention before God. God will pass by.” A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn’t to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn’t in the earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn’t in the fire; and after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper. When Elijah heard the quiet voice; he muffled his face with his great cloak, went to the mouth of the cave, and stood there. A quiet voice asked, “So Elijah, now tell me, are you doing here?”
If God is in the quiet voice, how can we hear God with all the noise and gadgets? So be still. Be quiet. When I directed the camp in South Dakota, every day after lunch we had “Solitude Time”. Before I knew too much about this and what I was doing, I scheduled 2 hours of solitude time. I had more trouble with people not following it, not being alone, talking with others, playing cards in secret and me trying to be a disciplinarian. Then it dawned on me that this is something to work towards with the staff. After that I started out with 15 minute increments per week and finally everyone longed for the 2 hours alone. Start slowly if you aren’t doing this already. Be gentle with yourself. But please do it. Mark it on your calendar. Do it with purpose. Did you hear about the man who did his devotions daily in his bedroom? He had a cat. Cats love to sleep on Bibles, papers, well, any books. To keep his cat from disturbing him, he bought a leash and tied the cat to the bedpost. His young daughter would see him doing this every morning. When she got her own place she tied her cat to the bedpost every morning for 30 minutes just like her dad. She’d get ready for work and untie the cat. Make sure your family members know about your quiet time and why you are tying the cat to the bedpost. :-)
Restaurant #5: India Garden
There are two India Garden Restaurants. I prefer the one on Delaware Downtown. It’s larger and more friendly in my estimation plus the food tastes a little bit better. Every time I go I order the same thing: Lamb Boti Kabaab Masala and the Onion Bread. They have coupons in Nuvo every other week for “buy one entree and get one free.” It’s not that expensive and ALWAYS good food if you like Indian food. It’s nice to be able to select the degree of hotness you prefer, too, since hot is not my thing. I have not been there for their lunch buffet………..yet. Let me know if you’d like to do this one Friday. The downtown restaurant is closed on Sundays so then we do have to go to Broad Ripple or wait.
