“Up now, slight man! Flee for a little while thy occupations; hide thyself for a time from thy disturbing thoughts. Cast aside now thy burdensome cares, and put away thy toilsome business. Yield room for some little time to God, and rest for a little time in Him. Enter the inner chamber of thy mind; shut out all thoughts save that of God and such as can aid thee in seeking Him. Speak now, my whole heart! Speak now to God, saying, I seek Thy face; Thy face, Lord, will I seek.”
~ Anselm ~
There is really no place I like more than the wilderness. With the exception of today of course with its crazy temps in the mid 90s and it feeling like it’s 106! Today, I’m all about the air conditioning. But as I’m enjoying the coolness of my office I recalled a recent outdoor adventure.
Last week I was hiking the trails of Forest Park Nature Center. Forest Park is one of my favorite local parks with plenty of great trails, always an opportunity to see wildlife and full of quiet. Quiet is not something easily come by these days. There is always something to distract us: music, facebook notifications, podcasts, coworkers, instagram alerts. The list is endless.
Ever so rarely are we quiet. I do not know the last time I was still and truly quiet. Today, silence is uncomfortable.
There are these signs at Forest Park along most of the trails. It’s a sign of an ear with the description, “Listening Point”. What a concept, listening. The sign is there to encourage quiet and to bask in the melodies of God’s creation. Now the park isn’t really encouraging me to stop and listen to God’s voice but that’s what I think of when I pass those signs. The outdoors, nature, wildlife are constantly praising their Creator. All I must do is to stop, be still, be quiet in the silence and listen.
Even more than taking in the harmonies of God’s creation He wants me to be silent and listen to His voice. I run and run all day long, well into the night and through the weekend. My body is hardly ever at rest. I do not make silence a priority. How can I hear God’s voice, guidance, counsel if I am constantly doing the talking? I can only truly take in His wisdom when I pause and let Him speak to me. How can I hear Him when all I hear is my own voice? I cannot.
I think maybe there should be more of these little “Listening Point” signs. It might just take a visual reminder to cause pause in the hubbub of my life and for silence to begin to take root. I should not be uncomfortable in silence. I need to welcome the silence for it is in those moments when I can hear God’s voice most distinctly. Silence should not be uncomfortable. For where there is silence God’s comfort will often be found.
Musings of a Tethered Soul 