Living in the middle of an African village is a noisy place to be. There is noise from 6 in the morning to midnight…quite often, even during the night, I wake up to animals fighting or drunks yelling! I’ve noticed it affects my state of mind…it gets muddled and confused. My thoughts can’t settle onto one subject very well, or at least for an extended period of time. And I am starting to really feel a craving for silence. Time with my Creator. Even time with myself.
Many people live a life full of noise, voluntarily. They are afraid of the quiet and the thoughts that invade when there is a moment of silence. So they fill their days with noise…music, television and hectic social lives. Even the current social media trends are just another form of noise. The constant texting and checking of status updates…it’s all an escape from our thoughts. It steals time from us. If we stay busy we don’t have to stop and reflect.
My challenge to you (and myself) is…start taking time to be absolutely quiet. Listen to your thoughts and slow them down. Breathe. Tell yourself that the thoughts you are having are okay…they are normal. Reflect on why you might be thinking this way. Take a long walk in nature. By yourself. No iPods or phones along. Just you and your Creator…in His creation. Start doing this on a regular basis. You will notice that He starts talking to you. You will hear His voice in the quiet. Start thanking Him for your life, warts and all. Thank Him for your circumstances, and for the people in your life. Thank Him for His creation, after all…you are part of it.
Be still, and know that I am God…Psalm 46:10a
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