Today is Day Thirty of 31 Days of Encountering God! If you missed the kick-off, you can go HERE and find the Introduction as well as each days post! (I will be adding every day as the month goes on!)
Encountering God in the Quiet...
This seems like it should be easy, right? I mean - we finally find the Quiet and we should find God, yes? In all the Noise of our world, Quiet can seem elusive... like a fairy tale... and just because we find it, that doesn't always mean that we cozy on up and enjoy His Presence - at least not right away.
Oh we want to! That is the goal... to seek out a little silence, and to be able to hear His still small voice! It can be done... rest assured - He IS speaking... but just because we manage to find quiet outside, doesn't mean we are able to so easily stop the noise in our heads! As we discussed yesterday, our lives are so crowded with Noise: constant beeps, buzzers, and notifications, so many voices all around us vying for our attention and counting off lists of Bossy, trying to tell us what to do, what needs to be done, what should have been done already. It can be hard to really hear. But I gave you a little secret yesterday... a little something I discovered that helps pull my focus towards the One who whispers soft, who is always speaking and giving us what we most need to hear - whether it is in the Quiet or Chaotic!
With all the noise that we are used to, I find many people are not comfortable in the Quiet. They feel it needs to be filled... it's awkward and uncomfortable and we press on to whatever is Next in order to just keep moving on.
But, what would happen if, instead of drowning out the silence, we leaned in to it? No matter what is going on around you... press in and give Him a moment to show you what is going on within you!
Oh it is possible to drink Him in in the middle of our hectic days but what still works best is when we carve out time to encounter God in the Quiet - even before the day begins! I find for me, even my inner voice that recites the daily part of life and the schedules to keep and the remembering of All. the. Things. - even she is not so much a morning person! So - if I can manage to turn my thoughts to Him first thing... before even leaving horizontal... before the brewing of the magic... when I start out my day, relishing in the quiet and inviting Him in to it first off, well - He is chatty and full of great things to say! But He is also patient... He is never in a hurry... and what He wants more than our devotions or morning prayer or Bible reading crossed off a list is the devotion of our hearts...
There are great Bible reading plans and early morning devotional groups, small groups that graciously meet up at local Starbucks first thing around the globe... and all of those things are awesome! Still, if you - like me - are not so much a morning person... He will meet you where you're at! Let's not make this harder than it has to be! The moment your thoughts turn to Him, He is there... (He's even there before that, of course... but the choice of encountering Him is all yours, my friend!) He is not wanting ever to be something we check off and move on to what is next! As I wrote about earlier (Day 8) - we can make it so hard... but sometimes it's easier than we think! Sometimes, He just wants us to be with Him.
Can I encourage you to lean in to the Quiet...
don't fill it... don't rush it...
just drink it in, and be with Him!
This seems like it should be easy, right? I mean - we finally find the Quiet and we should find God, yes? In all the Noise of our world, Quiet can seem elusive... like a fairy tale... and just because we find it, that doesn't always mean that we cozy on up and enjoy His Presence - at least not right away.
Oh we want to! That is the goal... to seek out a little silence, and to be able to hear His still small voice! It can be done... rest assured - He IS speaking... but just because we manage to find quiet outside, doesn't mean we are able to so easily stop the noise in our heads! As we discussed yesterday, our lives are so crowded with Noise: constant beeps, buzzers, and notifications, so many voices all around us vying for our attention and counting off lists of Bossy, trying to tell us what to do, what needs to be done, what should have been done already. It can be hard to really hear. But I gave you a little secret yesterday... a little something I discovered that helps pull my focus towards the One who whispers soft, who is always speaking and giving us what we most need to hear - whether it is in the Quiet or Chaotic!
With all the noise that we are used to, I find many people are not comfortable in the Quiet. They feel it needs to be filled... it's awkward and uncomfortable and we press on to whatever is Next in order to just keep moving on.
But, what would happen if, instead of drowning out the silence, we leaned in to it? No matter what is going on around you... press in and give Him a moment to show you what is going on within you!
Oh it is possible to drink Him in in the middle of our hectic days but what still works best is when we carve out time to encounter God in the Quiet - even before the day begins! I find for me, even my inner voice that recites the daily part of life and the schedules to keep and the remembering of All. the. Things. - even she is not so much a morning person! So - if I can manage to turn my thoughts to Him first thing... before even leaving horizontal... before the brewing of the magic... when I start out my day, relishing in the quiet and inviting Him in to it first off, well - He is chatty and full of great things to say! But He is also patient... He is never in a hurry... and what He wants more than our devotions or morning prayer or Bible reading crossed off a list is the devotion of our hearts...
There are great Bible reading plans and early morning devotional groups, small groups that graciously meet up at local Starbucks first thing around the globe... and all of those things are awesome! Still, if you - like me - are not so much a morning person... He will meet you where you're at! Let's not make this harder than it has to be! The moment your thoughts turn to Him, He is there... (He's even there before that, of course... but the choice of encountering Him is all yours, my friend!) He is not wanting ever to be something we check off and move on to what is next! As I wrote about earlier (Day 8) - we can make it so hard... but sometimes it's easier than we think! Sometimes, He just wants us to be with Him.
Can I encourage you to lean in to the Quiet...
don't fill it... don't rush it...
just drink it in, and be with Him!
Tomorrow we will talk about Encountering God in Tradition... just in time for all the Holiday Fun! In the Comments below, I'd love to hear how you carve out some Quiet in your real life? Where do you find it? How do you protect it? Let's share some tips... for I am guessing that we all go in seasons when it is easier to hold on to, and seasons when it feels impossible to grab even 5 minutes!
So good! I struggle with stillness, with allowing myself to truly encounter God in those places in between chaos and busy. I almost feel guilty for not filling the emptiness with something. But God wants to be the One to fill that place. And those lavender fields, I could truly get lost there with Him!
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