In Quietness

Isaiah 30:15 "... In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength."

I have been doing a lot of thinking and reading this portion of scripture this morning gave me a new perspective on issues pertaining my life and the Christian faith.

In quietness and trust is my strength. 

Quietness. 

That word seems alien in the world we are now living in. As I write this I can hear the sound of different vehicles outside my bedroom window - there is already a traffic snarl up - and so my surrounding is not even quiet. I think about today's world with all the little gadgets we have - phones, TV sets (whether analog or digital), stereo radios, laptops - and I wonder: How often do we stop to be quiet? It seems like something is always turned on, calling for your attention, a skype call, an email, a text message, breaking news, and so much more. Thinking about quietness this morning I marvel at how we survive with all the noise around us. I also forgot to mention the campaign efforts that seem to be rivaling one another in terms of who speaks louder and longer in the neighborhood. 

Despite the noise around us, I do realize that God has called us as Christians to be still, to wait in quietness and trust in Him coz it's only then that we are strengthened. While there may be so much noise around us that we feel bombarded the onus is really on us to seek to be quiet. Quiet within our hearts, quiet within our spirits, trusting God and not men and their ideas. We need to be able to stop and shut out all the noise, even the good intentioned noise.

There is a sense of peace that comes with quietness. When we stop and are still, alone, all else shut out, and we stand or sit in the presence of God in quietness. No music to help you worship. Just you and God ... still in His holy presence. It is only in quietness that we can hear that still small voice of the Holy Spirit. In quietness we learn to discern the thoughts and motives of our hearts and are then drawn to repentance. In quietness we learn to trust Him coz we are able to identify with Him as a loving Father. In quietness, our fears and anxieties are drawn out and we are filled with the boldness that we desperately need in order to step out and do exploits in our spheres. In that quietness, in that stillness, we find rest. In finding rest we are renewed and we are strengthened to keep running the race of faith with perseverance. 

Hmm...when was the last time you sat in quietness? When was the last time you shut out the world and allowed God to minister to you in a very special and specific way? When was the last time you packed your bags and went to a retreat in order to enjoy God's presence? Not to ask Him for things but to just be in His presence as a child in the presence of His loving Father. 

Maybe we should do that? Early in the year? Or maybe we should set one day a month for the next years of our lives to be quiet in Him? I think it will be worthwhile. As a start towards this (even before I read this scripture today) I have taken two major steps towards being quiet and so far so good and I am having fun coz now I have more time for God and I, and time for myself. It's just mid-January and I feel energized, blessed and expectant of what fruit shall be borne as a result of my decision to lead a more quiet life. 

C'mon ... let's try it. Even if it's one hour a day ... or thirty minutes a day ... trust me, we all need to be quiet in the Lord in order to be strengthened in Him.

In quietness ... what a lesson for me this morning!