I am so easily distracted. This might just be about the 5th blog post that I have started to write in the past month. It’s not that I haven’t wanted to write, but every time I start typing, about half way through I get the feeling that I’m just writing out of obligation, not because the Lord has placed something specific on my heart. Honestly though, how can He place anything on my heart, when I’ve been so engaged with every other aspect of my life, but not my relationship with Him. Maybe His sweet whispers have been rendered inaudible by my inability to sit still with Him for more than 10 seconds.
Have you ever taken a yoga class? It’s pretty common for the instructor to guide his or her students in a short mediation at the beginning or end of class. Now, I had heard teachers say this before, but I never really noticed how common it was until I became a yoga teacher myself… SO MANY people are incapable of staying still!!! Seriously. Within a 5 minute meditation usually over 90%* the class is itching to move on to whatever is next, either physically (fidgeting and adjusting) or mentally (trying to figure out what they want for lunch or how to check off the next items on their “to do” list once yoga is done).
It’s almost as if our minds are set on fast forward, anticipating whatever is next… so much sometimes that we completely forget to live in the present.
“BE STILL and know that I am God.” – Psalm 46:10
What does it mean to BE STILL??
In my imagination, this verse is accompanied with the word “contentment.” It is sitting in a wide, open field on the darkest of nights, surrounded by the company of hundreds of thousands of stars, communing in perfect peace with God.
Yes, that is my perfect picture, but let’s be real… How often does that happen??? Life is full of crazy chaos. We live in a busy world. And I don’t think the Lord intended for us to only be still or hear His voice or feel His presence under perfect conditions. On the contrary… in the very same Psalm this verse is written, He addresses that fact:
(2) Therefore do not fear though the earth gives way,
Though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
(3) Though its waters roar and foam,
Though the mountains tremble at its swelling.
Our world moves. It shakes. It trembles. And our lives mimic that. In no way do I think we ever find ourselves in perfect conditions here on this earth. So…
How do we learn to be BE STILL amidst it all?
How do we learn to be present, acknowledging the craziness, but not becoming overwhelmed by it?
I challenge you to ask God these questions as often as they come to the forefront of your mind. Remember today might be different than tomorrow or next week or next year. And His answer for me might be different than His answer for you. But simply “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find.” (Matthew 7:7)
I hope, if even for a minute today, you are able to find stillness in His presence.
* Made up figure, but I’d say it’s pretty accurate! =)
