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I admit it. I don’t sit still very often.
*Pause for gasps of shock*
In fact, one of the only times I sit still is in church.
It’s so hard for me because I think of everything else I need to be or could be doing once I sit down away from my computer.
But don’t get me wrong; I still pay attention. As a writer, I write to process. So while I may be refining a to-do list, I’m also taking sermon notes.
A couple weeks ago, as I pulled out my planner/notebook, my husband leaned over to me and said, “try to put everything away today”. So dutifully I did. But not only did I have trouble listening to our pastor, but my mind started to wander even more…and yes, I got bitter at my husband for even suggesting such a thing!
I actually found myself listening to the sermon less than if I had allowed my normal brain outflow on to paper.
Think of it this way – in order for me to make more room in my brain to receive new info, I need to pour out some things onto paper. Some of the sweetest times I’ve had with God have been after I’ve gone to a quiet spot (I prefer my closet) with a legal pad and just “emptied my brain” onto the paper. I’ve filled up sheets & sheets in one sitting! I just write whatever comes to mind: items to-do, things I want to make for dinner, people whose face pop in my head, random words, bills I have to pay…you get the idea.
Once I’ve poured everything I’ve been carrying around in my head out on to the paper, I feel like I’m finally able to let God speak to me in the silence (literal & figurative). You see, it does me no good to sit in a quiet place if there’s a lot of noise in my own head.
Everyone experiences God differently: some will go for a walk, some wake up early and pray, some experience God on their commute singing praise songs in the car. God happens to meet me where I am, and more often than not, that comes when I have old-fashioned pen and paper in hand.
Be still and know I am God ~ Psalm 46:10
What does ‘being still’ look like in your life? Where does God meet you most often?
1 comment
I can completely relate to this! I’ve gone to Eucharistic Adoration at our parish a few times this year just to have the forced silence. But, even then, tons of thoughts try to fly through my head and keep me from just being silent in God’s presence.
Visiting through the Alexa hop today and glad I spotted this post.