We are Deathly scared of silence.
Stillness.
It scares the living daylights out of us all, I believe.
Notifications are going off incessantly in the background. Instagram likes. Twitter follows, retweets and favorites. Facebook likes, shares, group notifications and the like. A new follower on Snapchat. In the last hour 50 new videos have been uploaded to YouTube according to your news feed. Notifications are penetrating into your daily life. At work. While you’re at dinner. Your voicemail messages have doubled in the last hour. You’re running out of memory because your text messages are full.
Notifications are also going off in the background of your life. You just broke up with your ex. None of your friends call you anymore.
So many things constantly vie for our attention. The funny part about focusing is that the minute you do, anything on the immediate peripheral starts to “act up” with the intent of throwing you off of your focus game. But I am going to take a cue from the Holy Bible which actually speaks to our need for quietness, rest and peace in our souls. It says “ In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” Isaiah 30:15
If and when we take time to go within and find our inner quiet, we will find that at first it is the scariest thing that we’ve ever done. If we haven’t dealt healthily with our past or our hangups, those little nuances will be there in the silence waiting on us as well. Do you cringe at the thought of beginning this routine. It doesn’t have to be that way. Its typically this way when we begin a brand new habit. The forced detour in another direction is so abrupt that it’s almost an enemy. But after focused effort and consistency it becomes our best friend. We even begin to look forward to it. Because after repeatedly meditating on scripture, the blessings in our life and other “praiseworthy” things, our fears, doubts, regrets and vexations become just like the little boy who was once told by his mother to stay seated in thecorner. After repeatedly telling him to do so, he replies, “Okay, ill sit down but I’m standing up on the inside.” Those “little foxes” that vie for our attention will eventually have to submit to the rapid gunfire of positive thoughts that we have trained ourselves to meditate on. The depressed feeling we gain from thinking or ruminating on all that is wrong, will be replaced with a deep sense of thankfulness that comes with focusing on all that is right. Its a very powerful practice. So don’t shirk the silence, embrace it when it comes.
Beginning our day with quiet prayer, meditation or deliberate stillness even has proven health benefits for the nervous system. That’s a big plus for all you writers and creative types.
If and when we take time to go within and find our inner quiet, we will find that at first it is the scariest thing that we’ve ever done.
Despite the initial shock it can be when you first start the discipline, I actually enjoy moments of solitude. There is nothing to do but REcreate and reflect. I relish at the thought of deliberate or forced relaxation. Even if at first I get upset at canceled plans or a called rehearsal, ultimately I know that its the best thing for me.
