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Monday, September 22, 2008

So easy, yet so hard

As a mom it is sometimes hard to find the moments to just be still. More often than not you think you have "that" moment only to hear a screech or a cry of "Moooommm!". At that point you know you lost your moment.

I am the type of person that needs that time in the morning and at the end of my day to just be quiet. I need the moments in the morning while the day is new to focus my heart and attitude on the things of God. Then I need the few, precious minutes at the end of the day to sit down and decompress.

During those moments I try to cram in as much as I can before the kids get up or I have to go to bed. Sometimes the moments with God are quickly forgotten in my haste to check emails or shower. I have to make Him first priority. My time with God is what starts my day on the right path.

I was skimming through some sites this afternoon in between my calls and I came across this devotion that really made me think about those quiet moments. It made me think about how I spend them. Is it rushed? Do I try to hurry up and get to the end of the verse so I can get my laundry switched over? Or do I meditate and think about what I read and how it applies to my life? Do I truly desire to give God my day?

That has been my goal. To make my quiet time with Him the priority in my day. To sit, be still, pray....

Please read this devotional and take a moment to be still.



Learning To Be Still
Bishop E. Earl Jenkins

"Be still, and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10

Former CBS anchor, Dan Rather, found himself unprepared for a television interview with Mother Teresa. Ron Mehl described the encounter this way: "All of Dan's standard approaches were inadequate. And the little nun from Calcutta didn't seem inclined to make his task easier. "When you pray," asked Dan, "what do you say to God?" "I don't say anything," she replied. "I listen." Dan tried another tack. "Well, okay...when God speaks to you, then, what does He say?" "He doesn't say anything. He listens." Dan looked bewildered. For an instant, he didn't know what to say. "And if you don't understand that," Mother Teresa added, "I can't explain it to you."

It's in the place of silence that the Holy Spirit boils the truth we receive from Scripture down to its essence, reveals specific insights that are pertinent, and then applies them to our most perplexing problems and our most stubborn misconceptions. As He transforms our heart to beat in sync with His, our decisions begin to accomplish His will and we begin to reflect His character. Go ahead, try it. Open the Word of God in a peaceful place and sit in quietness before Him. In time, the Holy Spirit will illuminate a passage and it will come to life in your mind. Before you know it the knotty situation that drove you to distraction will unravel.

As you learn to "be still" in God's presence, your greatest problems will suddenly become more manageable. He will reveal Himself to you. He will calm your emotions and relieve your mind. You'll discover new direction, freedom from worry, and a fresh sense of peace.



2 comments:

Apple said...

I don't think you even realize how many times this verse has come into my focus this week. This post is, I think, the fourth or fifth time that this exact verse has come into my life in the last 6 days.

That's a lot! I think someone is trying to tell me to slow down, what do you think?

Karen Hossink said...

I agree with you - those moments of peace and stillness are priceless. I treasure them!
But I am also enormously thankful that God can speak to me through the noise and chaos which surrounds me so much more often than the solitude.
Know what I mean? *grin*