July 16, 2012
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Be still and know that I am God!  Psalm 46:10

 

Recently, our 2 year old grandson Will visited us.  He lives a long way away, so it was a glorious  and a very busy time.  No one holds a candle to Will in busyness.  One evening it was my responsibility to quiet Will and get him off to bed.  The process started with a bath, not too quieting, I might add!  Next came story time with The Cat in the Hat, again not a very quieting event.  Finally Grandma decided the Cat had to go and we went into the cool, dim, quiet bedroom to rock and talk about what his day had been like.  As we talked, I rubbed his head and back and his chatter came at longer intervals and at last he was ready for bed.

Sometimes my prayer time is like that.  I sit with God and my mind is busily recounting concerns of the day, asking for help or mercy, praising His goodness and all the while God is patting my soul, waiting for me to get quiet and be still.  Like Will, sometimes I resist the quiet and insist on my topics for prayer.  But like the good Parent He is, God waits for me to become open to His presence and I eventually am in a more peaceful place.

Often while in prayer, I feel like I need to work through some problem with God, or to do some other activity with God.  But there are moments when I sense the Lord wants me to be quiet and know that the He is God.  I do find when I’m more prayerful during my busy day, I feel the movement toward stillness in prayer time, as if I’m being tugged in that direction.  Contemplation in prayer specifically looks for those still moments.  When I contemplate, I lean, not force, my prayer time more toward those quiet moments than toward prayerful activities, such as recitation of prayers.

Sometimes these moments of stillness occur at busy points of my day.  In the midst of preparing for class or sitting in a meeting I find myself getting quiet inside.  As I am able, I allow the Lord to take me to that quiet place, knowing that is what I need at that moment.  I may just close the book I was using in preparation, shut my eyes and float with God for a few minutes.

Peace,

Donnie

About The Author:

My simple life… is not simple at all. Yet it is so simple when I let God lead me. I have been married to Greg for 27 years and we have three wonderful children. My simple life is not simple at all. Yet it is so simple when I let God take control. I followed God’s call to begin seminary at Perkins School of Theology in January 2006. I graduated in May 2011. My life is not simple at all. Yet it is so simple when I listen for God’s call. I began the Degree in the Art of Spiritual Direction at San Francisco Theological Seminary in January 2009. I graduated in May 2011. My life is not simple at all. Yet it is so simple when I listen for God's call. I was ordained in the Presbyterian Church USA and spent three amazing years in Pastoral Ministry at Highland Springs Senior Living in Dallas, TX. My life is not simple at all. Yet it is so simple when I listen for God's call. My passion is the Christian Spiritual Life. As a spiritual director and retreat leader, I am so blessed to hear how God is at work in the world. How is God at work in your life?

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