Quiet means the absence of noise or bustle; it is silence, or to be calm and still.
The beauty of being quiet is that we have time and space to calm our minds and hearts, and can reconnect with both God and ourselves. Without that time of quiet it becomes very hard to hear God’s leading, and to be in tune with our own thoughts and emotions.
Jesus who the world and history agrees is one of the greatest leaders and influencers of all time set an example of giving time to be quiet. At the peak of His earthly ministry when crowds surrounded him at every turn and people were coming from everywhere to hear him speak and be prayed for, Jesus would withdraw by Himself to a solidary place so that he could be quiet and pray. He knew the value of quietness, of focusing on the important rather than urgent and the vital necessity to commune with heaven.
“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for him, and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you” (Mark 1:35-37)
If Jesus, the Son of God felt the need to have times of quiet so as to be effective and centred, why on earth do we think we can live victorious, fruitful, joyful lives without doing the same? Yet so often instead of quietness we surround ourselves with constant noise from technology, people, and our need for activity. We then wonder why we feel directionless, unsure, powerless to effect change and stressed out.
Today I encourage you to follow the example of Jesus and to regularly take time to be quiet. To turn off the noise, to draw away to a solidary place, even if only for a few moments, and to, “be still and know that He is God.” (Psalm 46:10) For God promises that as we seek Him and wait upon Him in the quietness that, “He will renew our strength; we shall mount up with wings as eagles; we shall run, and not be weary; and we shall walk, and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)
“This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.” (Isaiah 30:15)
Prayer: Lord please help me to wait on you in the quiet. That you would still my racing mind and heart and help me to be still so that you can restore and renew my strength, and so that I might hear from heaven today. In Jesus name Amen.