Into the Quiet

Quiet. A sound that I’ve never found myself comfortable in. I was sitting in the doctors office today (and yes all is well) waiting for my Doctor to come in, and I realized that there was no music, no steady hum of the ac running (because it’s cold in Texas today y'all) I couldn’t really hear any of the noise from outside the waiting room, and I found myself squirming from the silence. To which it got me thinking. I don’t sleep in silence, I have to have a fan and some sort of soft music in the background or else I will not sleep. I have to have music on in the car when I’m driving, I even have music on as I'm writing this. I feel uncomfortable in silence. And here is when it dawned on me, the Lord speaks to me the most when all around me is QUIET. Oh how He wants to spend time with us, time to where we quiet ourselves from the busy-ness and chaotic-ness that the world often has us in.

For most of my life I’ve battled with quieting my brain, it seems like a never ending struggle to find a time when it’s not going a million miles an hour, and interestingly enough, the quiet seems to stimulate it even more. So throughout my life I’ve found ways to help drive the quiet out.Though, in the middle of all this I am often reminded of some scriptures in the book of Psalms. Psalm 46:10 which says “Surrender your anxiety! Be silent and stop your striving and you will see that I am God.” Psalm 62:5 “Pause in his presence, I am standing in absolute stillness, silent before the one I love, waiting as long as it takes for him to rescue me. Only God is my Savior, and he will not fail me.” Psalm 37:7 “Quiet your heart in his presence and pray; keep hope alive as you long for God to come through for you.”

I’ve become so accustomed to the noise I’ve forgotten how to be still and listen to the Lord’s voice in the quiet. I know that I’m not the only one who struggles with posturing themselves before the Lord in stillness. And I’m here to tell you that you are not alone, and that it CAN be done. It’s so easy for us to get distracted with our schedules, children, friends, family, sports, activities, daily duties of being a parent, our jobs, whatever these things may be, at the end of the day we should crave and desire to be still in the Lord’s presence. Sometimes it seems easier to sit on the couch, and zone out to a show on Netflix, find some sort of way to “check out” of reality for a little bit, but why aren’t we going to the Lord first? This is a huge conviction of mine, and I’ll be the first to admit that I need to stop making “excuses” of why I’m not spending more time with the Lord in his presence. This past week the Lord has been speaking to me a lot, and if I hadn’t taken the time to listen, seek His guidance and direction, I wouldn’t have made a decision that needed to be make that was vital to my destiny.

Exodus 14:14 says that “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” I chose to be still, was it easy? No. Was it necessary? Yes, undoubtedly yes. I challenge you today, take time to be still in his presence. Listen to what He wants to say to you, speak over you, remind you, confirm for you...whatever it is you’re seeking from Him, listen. I will leave you with one of my favorite Psalms, and one I know that most are familiar with. Psalm 23, “The Lord is my best friend and my shepherd. I always have more than enough. He offers a resting place for me in his luxurious love. His tracks take me to an oasis of peace, the quiet brook of bliss. That’s where he restores and revives my life. He opens before me pathways to God’s pleasure and leads me along in his footsteps of righteousness so that I can bring honor to his name. Lord, even when your path takes me through the valley of deepest darkness, fear will never conquer me, for you already have! You remain close to me and lead me through it all the way. Your authority is my strength and my peace. The comfort of your love takes away my fear. I’ll never be lonely, for you are near. You become my delicious feast even when my enemies dare to fight. You anoint me with the fragrance of your Holy Spirit; you give me all I can drink of you until my heart overflows. So why would I fear the future? For your goodness and love pursue me all the days of my life. Then afterward, when my life is through, I’ll return to your glorious presence to be forever with you!”

Follow Him into the quiet.