Be Still and Know that I am God (Psalm 46:10a)

Not too long ago I began to have a regular time of silence, to listen for God’s voice. This time of silence is a bit different than my usual prayers and Bible study. It is a time of awareness and of openness. More than that, it has been a discipline.

I started out with 30 minutes of silence on my day off. I would go and set the timer on the stove and then sit in my chair just listening. Now, you have to know that silence and I don’t get along too well. I almost always have to have some sort of ‘noise’ going on to even concentrate on something (though I think that is changing), either music or television – just something.

When I sat down for that first 30 minutes of silence, I discovered why: my mind was simply racing. It was all I could do to stick on a single thought. I began thinking about all the things I needed to do, replaying conversations and disagreements, considering the options for lunch, and the like. It was chaos…far from the peace that I’d heard silence would supposedly bring. It was really all I could do to sit in my chair, especially when I had an idea (a really good idea too!); I wanted to get up and start working on it right away.

In that first 30 minutes of silence, God revealed something to me. It was probably something I already knew about myself, but in reflecting on my experience it became very clear: I am very impatient.

I did make it through that 30 minutes, and the timer helped keep me from adding “look at your watch” to the chaos that was going on in my mind (though to be honest, I looked at it at around 20 minutes in). And, I think even in all that chaos I still heard the voice of God. It wasn’t a ‘magical’ moment or even a mystical moment, it was simply a moment of awareness.

Since that first time of silence, it has gotten easier. I no longer feel quite so chaotic and I no longer have the urge to jump up and ‘do’ something. I have not tried to still my mind, I have just practiced sitting in silence and the practice has become easier and more fruitful.

Galatians 5:22-23a “By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”

What has your time of silence been like for you?

Since all of creation praises God, perhaps nature can teach us ways of praising! For your 10 minutes of silence this week, do it outside. Observe the ways that nature praises God. Listen for God. If you like find a way to connect to nature, to touch it, feel it, smell it as well as hear it.

What is it like to be connected to creation in listening to God? What did you hear? What did you experience?

Shalom Y'all!