Quiet

"Perhaps at this point I need to share with you the greatst difficulty you will have in waiting upon the Lord. it has to do with your mnd. The mind has a very strong tendency to stray away from the Lord. Therefore, as you come before your Lord to sit in His presence, beholding Him, make use of the Scripture to quiet your mind.~Jeanne Guyon, Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ
SeedSower Press 1965, pg 9

Another example of the world being a noisy place. Consider, too, that the publication date for this book is for this book. Ms. Guyon penned thse words in 1685 for friends. In 1685, the world was noisy. How much more noisy is it now?
By noisy, I mean distracting. Now most people I know have at least two TVs, more than one computer. internet services, and sometimes every soul in the family, including children (under 12) have th newest iPhones. We live in a noisy, rather Sodom-and-Gomorrah type society, unless with great effort we focus on honoring God. 
However, I digress to the subject o being quiet before the Lord. Now, as a child Christian (young in the faith) we feel often that we must be the ones speaking. We pray, we end the prayer, and while we may pray multiple times a day (depending on the day or what have you), we are uncomfortable sitting in silnce bfore God. 
I believe this may be lilke the quote I heard of which says that if you can sit for half an hour in silence with another person, you are truly comfortable with them, a deeper relationship. 
We should be able to get to a point of being silent in the presence of God----enjoying His presence, 
Now. as Guyon points out, Scripture beforehand; that is, at the beginning of studying the Lord "time" it is easier to drive all noise from the mind. I believe that that has to do with the fact that no evil one is going to go near a mind that is actively, recently saturated with the Word. How did they behave before the Savior? None too calmly. So then, it is likely that studying the Word and spendin times of silence with the Lord are easier when paired. 
I personally have a difficult time praying without my mind wandering. Oh, I need to do this, I need to do that (maybe "try" is better), or depression because of the RA is interferring with prayer . My mind wanders less after spending more time in the Word. My mind wanders less if I write the prayers out---but still my mind wanders the least when I have been spening an adequate-for-me-time with the Word and godly authors. What is thrilling for me is how my mind wanders even less than before with a new step in prayer/praise: a more or less listing the names of God I know..My Rock, my Savior, my King, my Lord. 
What is important is being with God. Reading the Word, being determined to focus on God, these things help clear your mind so that you are more able to spend quality time with Him. The benefits of the time spent studying, determined to be with God is the fact that the things meant to drive us apart from Him, the tortures of today (RA and depression because of for me at this moment) are lessened, We get to experience the peace, strength and joy---not to mention life---that comes from being fully in His presence. A much better alternative to the terror of living alone and handling the world alone.