People that know me know that I love hiking. Sure, it’s great exercise and beautiful scenery, but it’s the sound that I love the most. I’m sure you’re wondering what sounds the woods make that I’m so intrigued by. The answer is a whole lot of nothing! You might hear an occasional squirrel or leaves being lifted by the wind but other than that, nothing! Ahh! Quiet for my mind. That’s what I crave. God knows that we need that place sometimes. It may not be the woods for you. It could be a cozy room in your house. It could be the lake. It can be anywhere but it’s important that you have a quiet place.
“Be still, and know that I am God!” (Psalms 46:10 NLT) Sitting still is not always the answer. Our minds have to be still so we can fully focus on our Creator. He’s got important information He needs and wants to impart to us. Every detail of our life matters to Him and we need His direction. The only way to get that is to commune with Him. Elijah had an interesting encounter with the Lord. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper (1 Kings 19:12 NLT). After the fireworks that basically got his attention, the gentle whisper of God speaking came to him. We all get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of life that sometimes we just can’t hear the gentle whisper.
The Lord knows we have to function in this world. We have so many responsibilities. Some days we have longer to sit with Jesus than others. But make every moment count. Be deliberate about your meetings with Him. This is your fuel and peace. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7 NLT). You will find rest for your soul nowhere else. You can sleep all night sometimes but not have “rest”.
There’s a story in the book of Matthew about the disciples traveling across a lake with Jesus in a boat. Jesus was sleeping and a storm came up. The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm (Matthew 8:25-26 NLT). If you’re a Christ follower, Jesus is literally in your boat! He’s with you always. How many times do we panic when chaos hits our life and act just as the disciples did? We get fixated on the “noise” and forget all about Who’s in the boat! “The great calm” Jesus brought to the disciples in that account is still the calm He wants us to have today. It’s only possible if we keep Him in His proper place in our lives. He trumps every storm and we have to remember that we belong to Him.
Life gets crazy! Take a timeout. You need a rest that only the inventor of rest can give. You need to get His perspective for your life. He wants to be the One you run to and say, “I’m tired. You take it!” He will refresh you and you can refresh others. Noise is all around us. The doubts, a lot of the time, drown out the Truth. It seems as though everyone and everything is competing for your attention. But we can escape, if only for a short time, to meet with our Savior for revitalization. It is a most necessary tactic if we want to survive in this chaotic world. We actually were designed to live dependent upon Him. We cannot do life on our own. We all have to escape to the sound of nothing.
Today’s guest writer is Brandi Crowe. A hairdresser for over 25 years, she is currently the owner of Brandi Crowe salon in Buford, GA. She loves hiking, a good cup of coffee, and spending time with family and friends. Brandi lives in a custom farmhouse with her husband Robby and cat Harold.
