Seeking Peace, Finding Sanctuary

I come from a Christian tradition of faith known as the Mennonite Brethren.  I should clarify right here and now that this does not mean I'm Amish, as is the general misconception.  One theological point that separates this denomination from other Protestant denominations is its emphasis on peace.  The whole idea of peace seems rather mysterious to me.  Peace is not merely the absence of war, but the growth of pure virtues.  How can peace be found?

I was reading the book Finding Sanctuary by Christopher Jamison over the summer for one of my classes this semester.  Jamison is the Abbot at a Benedictine monastery called Worth Abbey in Sussex England.  His book speaks of how to build spiritual sanctuaries in our lives by creating times of silence, being obedient to God and others, being humble, living as a community, being faithful in life, and looking forward to eternal life after death.  I struggled to understand why he and others who follow the Benedictine monastic tradition
believed silence was so vital in a life of faith.

The book began by explaining how unnecessarily busy the lives of people in western civilization are. This made sense, because it is not by works that we are saved, but by grace, through faith. What we do is important, but it will not earn us salvation, so making ourselves helplessly busy, even in doing good things is not something God asks of us. Instead, God wants all of us in faith, so He can work through us. Jamison declared there is a need in each person's life to take the time to be silent and cast off any distractions. Stopping all surrounding noises and activities leaves only you and God and I believe it is important to spend time alone with God on a regular basis, to keep your life focused on important things.

The whole concept of focusing your life on what God wants through simplifying is easy enough for me to understand, but much more difficult for me to implement into my own way of living.  I have filled my life so full that I don't even have time for sitting and watching a quick tv show (which was partially intentional, since I think they are rather unnecessary in life), but that means I also don't have much time for stopping and helping a friend in need without a readjustment of my priorities.  As far as building silence around me to listen for God's voice, this feels next to impossible living in a college dorm!  How can I chose which activities are important and which ones should be removed to make room for God to work in my life?

The answer is of course to give God complete control of my life.  Let Him decide what is important, rather than play tug-of-war with my time.  But this is Christian jargon that sounds great but doesn't mean much without practical application.  How do I give God control of my life?  What does that mean?  I don't pretend to have that answer, but I do know that it starts with prayer and ends in obedience.  I think silence lies somewhere in the middle.  Giving at least enough time to God, just me and God, for Him to speak to my heart, telling me what He wants, and for me to refocus on the one important thing I have.  Somewhere just beyond this silence lies peace.  It is the fruit of justice and mercy, which come from God.  Peace, unlike tranquility, is concerned with how people relate to one another.  How I can relate meaningfully to others with a combination of justice and mercy is something I intend to work out as I live my life, but it will start in the sanctuary of my heart, where I am working to make room for God and the things He has for me.