Stillness by Kate Sweeney

Stillness.

Perfect Stillness.

It is a very great gift, not always available to those who would most appreciate it or find joy in it, and often not appreciated by those who have it but are uncomfortable with it. External noise is inescapable in many places - traffic, sirens, people talking about everything everywhere, music (the kind my Grandma says has such thundering amplification that it makes the ground shudder).


Its amazing what a few days out of your normal environment will do. Going home is one of places where for short while, all the chaos of the moment gets muted. I think we get so accustomed to the noise of business we forget to seek silence and retreat.


I spent a night just gazing at stars, which were perfectly clear and sweetly glittering, and found myself completely engrossed in a conversation with God as though He was right there, chilling in the hot tub. Why doesn't that happen more often? Pretty soon though my mind began to race to other things: lyrics from a song...next week......project deadlines...doctor appointments.....NEO training........which led to thinking about all the emails sitting in my inbox....and I reached for my iPhone to set a reminder for later when I realized something. Not only was my mind racing but so was my heart rate and the peace of just sitting and being still was gone.

Ugh.


I think it is possible to learn stillness, but only if it is seriously sought. He did say "be still and know that I am God." The stillness in which we find God is not superficial, a mere absence of fidgeting or talking. It is a deliberate and quiet attentiveness - receptive, alert, ready. Wherever you are, be all there. This concept is easy enough if we're talking about sports.

Especially college football.
Got it.

For me, this quietness in the presence of God, this being "all there" for Him, though I desire it and treasure it, is not easy to maintain, even in the beautiful places I find myself in....like a hot tub and perfect night sky overhead.

Wouldn't it be a calming thing to just practice stillness, which is the absence of motion? Why not try a quiet day or quiet week without the usual noises and distractions?


Maybe a better question is, does God seem absent?


Yes, for most of us He sometimes does. Even at such a time may we simply be still before Him, trusting that He reads everything we cannot put into words?





My friend Kate Sweeney posted this on facebook, Monday, December 28, 2009 and it touched me so much, I asked her if I could share it with you. She graciously agreed. I hope it blesses you and encourages you to seek out still moments with our heavenly father.


God bless!
J