Often we long to be close to God but often many distractions get in our way to encountering him in the way we desire.
This week I incorporated a spiritual practice of ascending degrees of silence in a retreat. One version is at this link. At its conclusion I had a deep attentiveness to God’s presence with me and a longing for more time with him in this way.
For each of the twelve steps you ‘shut off’ the element that is raised and dwell there for 5-10 minutes. In that time you reflect on what the purpose or meaning is of that step (in the version linked above some thoughts about each one are shared).
Continue with each step adding to the previous, like the ascending of stairs. As you end the time your hope is to be present, silent, and attentive to God. It is hard work but opens us to hearing from God. What could a practice like this do for you?