“Be still, and know that I am God!”
One Friday evening I was at a retreat at Kirkridge – a
retreat center about 6 miles south of Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania along route 191.
There came a point in the evening when we were to
practice silence, which was to last until after breakfast the next morning.
The time of silence was to be a time of reflection,
of prayer, of reading, of journaling, of being open to the presence of God.
In that silence, the words “Be still and know that
I am God!” came to me and pressed upon my mind.
As I meditated on those words, the words “be still”
became the center of my focus.
As I focused on those two words, I realized how
little time I took to be still.
Also, I realized that being still meant more than
just ceasing the activity of one’s body.
I realized it also meant the stilling of one’s mind
– ceasing or slowing down the activity or business of one’s mind – in order to
become more focused and centered on God, on others, on self or on whatever it is
we are in need of hearing or seeing or experiencing.
This stilling of the mind is what particularly struck me.
I saw that stilling or quieting the mind can take
place anywhere, even in the midst of one’s activities, even in the midst of
being busy.
I saw that stilling or quieting the mind opened people to
being more focused or centered.
I saw that it opened people to experiencing God’s
presence and to hearing the voice of God more clearly.
I saw that it enabled people to listen much better
to others.
I saw that it enabled people to be more open to hearing
and experiencing the world around them, especially the small things that get
overlooked so many times.
I saw that it enabled a people to enter much more
deeply into the depths of their being or soul and to understand more clearly who
they are, what healing they need, and what direction their spiritual journey
needs to take.
On February 22, Lent will begin.
It is a season that involves this concept of being
still.
Lent is about being still and looking at our lives, in
order to see how to view ourselves and treat ourselves; in order to see what is
really important to our lives; in order to see where sin is still prevalent in
our lives; in order to see where we need to change and to allow the healing and
transforming power of God to work.
Lent is about being still and looking at our
relationship with God, in order to see if we know God and his grace.
It is to see if we are truly endeavoring to walk
and grow in our faith.
It is about being still and looking at how we
relate to others and our world and whether those relationships are pleasing to
God.
Now, being still, especially with one’s mind, is not
always easy.
It takes time, discipline and patience to do it on a
consistent basis.
I believe practicing the spiritual disciplines
regularly helps us in learning to quiet or still our minds and being.
During the season of Lent, I hope each of us endeavor to
be intentional about being still and knowing God, as well as ourselves, others
and our world.
May God help us in this endeavor and in making it a
routine part of our lives.
Peace in Christ,