Selah

A few weeks ago, a member on my team received a book before we left the United States. It was very special the way he got a hold of this book actually. While we were still at training camp, one of the speakers who came to teach us that particular day just happened to be an author. But when she got up on stage to teach she instead began by saying “Is there someone named John here?” And yes there was. Only one John in the whole room actually. And he just happened to be on my team. And as he raised his hand she began to tell us that the Lord put it on her heart to give someone named John one of her books that day. So she did, and John read the book. When he finished, he passed it onto me and when I finished I passed it on again. The traveling book the Lord so perfectly orchestrated to make its way through our team. Each of us grasping different parts in a unique and beautiful way. The part that stuck out to me as a read this book was really just a side thought if one could even call it that. It was a concept the author mentioned in passing, barley taking up a paragraph. But it’s the one part of whole book that I couldn’t get off my mind. The word, Selah. Selah means to rest, take pause, or pay attention. The author explained that the Lord wants to use everyday occurrences, interactions or events to teach us something. A few nights later, my team was having some quite prayer time and to be honest I wasn’t hearing ANYTHING from the Lord. My mind kept wondering everywhere else except praying & I couldn’t stay focused for the life of me. I was getting so frustrated with myself and honestly a little frustrated with God for not speaking when I wanted Him to. Just as I was about to give up, I heard a noise. I looked up and saw was Magdalena. Magdalena is the security guard for the ministry we are at. He was whistling and walking. As I watched him, the word SELAH came back into my mind again. So I paused and decided to lean in and pay attention. As I continue to watch Magdalena, he circled around buildings and trees, as he continued to wonder through the property he knows so well. And at that moment the Lord revealed a very amazing part of who He is. Just as Magdalena knows every part of this property, the Lord knows every part to my heart. He knows all the ways to get in and out. He knows the weak points & the strong points. He knows where things are broken and where things need repair. He delights in fully knowing me. As just as Magdalena silently watches and guards his property, the Lord is my silent guard. Fighting off all my enemies. All my attackers that I don’t even know I have. He sees them from miles away. He circles around my heart. Around my weak areas where I can’t defend myself. He surrounds me with his all encompassing strength and power and no enemy is able to break through. And he does it all in silence. He is my strong and mighty protector, that is guarding me day and night, fighting off anything that may come my way. And he is victorious. I have the silent and perfect protection of my king. My most favorite thing about what the Lord taught me that day, wasn’t what He actually revealed about himself. But that through that revelation, he opened my eyes to a new pathway of communication. My beautiful friend Jesus wants my whole day to be a conversation with him. Of course the Holy Spirit speaks during worship, or at church, while reading the Bible or during intentional prayer. But he also speaks throughout the rest of our day too. It’s easy to think “when it’s God time it’s Gods time and when it’s me time it’s my time” but God is there in all the times. Being sensitive to the Selah moments simply means being able to pause what I think is important and lean into what God says is important. I was so intrigued by this concept. The Lord doesn’t just have a plan for my far off future, but He also has a plan for each day. I began thinking about it and realized that I was idolizing my schedule and keeping on track with what I had planned and what I wanted to accomplish throughout my day more than I was desiring Gods will & Gods voice. Selah means pausing my plans and schedule to listen to what God wants to say. It’s so easy to pause or slow down when a family member calls or needs to talk for a few minutes. So why is it so hard to give God the same attention? Selah means to make the choice to pause my day and listen when He speaks. And as I’m learning, He constantly is.