That was the challenge we heard at church last Sunday morning, from Psalm 46:10 - to start the New Year with this as a goal –
Be still and know that He is God.
Does that mean if we can’t/don’t/ won’t sit still,
we cannot know the One who bids us come and find rest?
Oh.
It's a lot to think about, a major reorienting of perspective, because doing nothing is counter to a lot of what we say to ourselves most of the time:
-How can I streamline this process?
Gotta make the time count.
-How can I multitask in this situation?
-I need to get moving.
-I’m wasting time.
Be Still?
Who has time for all that nothing??
Here’s a link to a thought-provoking TED radio hour on the topic of Quiet and stillness. I found each segment had something to contribute to the crockpot stew bubbling in my mind.
But Pico Iyer’s words about the refreshment and new perspective than can come with sitting still, beginning around 37:27, continue to give me food for thought. I received his book, The Art of Stillness, Adventures in Going Nowhere, as a Christmas gift, and I’m on my second read-through. As he states on the book cover,
I recall that I didn’t add detergent to the washer.
I discover my coffee is cold.
I need to check e-mail to see if she got back to me about those plans.
I add four items to my to-do list.
I realize my teeth need flossed.
I see a stack of laundry that I ought to put away. (I could pray while I’m doing that...)
I rush to the freezer to thaw something for dinner.
I decide to clean out a desk drawer.
And when I finally settle myself, "sitting in the silence," I call it - something like this happens.
I'm learning to do this by fits and starts. Don't laugh - it has helped me to add it to my daily list: "-Silence."
You would think an old(ish) woman like me wouldn't have so much trouble sitting still,
but you would be wrong.
So much effort.
And so worth it.
I dare you to try it, I dare you to sit in the silence of your day, just for a few minutes. Maybe ten?
Not sit and nap, or sit and read, or sit and pray (you can also do all of those things, but not during the sitting in silence.) Don't "do something,"
just sit there, and become aware of what you see and hear and sense in those few quiet minutes.
"Take time for the quiet moments, as God whispers and the world is loud." (Author unknown)
It’s a simple task, but it might not be as easy as it sounds.
Sit in the silence.
Experience the adventure of going nowhere.
Tell me what you discover.
I'll be here.