“My soul, wait in silence for God only, For my hope is from Him.” Psalm 62:5 (NASB1995)
Each year, a beautiful new planner sits on my desk, blank pages ready to be filled. This calendar may seem silent, but don’t let it fool you. It has been sending me the same loud messages for years: Action leads to achievement. You’d better get moving. Time is ticking.
Much of my life has been dedicated to developing my talents and abilities, increasing my capacity, and getting it all done. As a young professional, my worth hung on my employer’s words, positive or negative. As a mom, too, I needed to hear I was doing a good job. Now I’m in an empty-nest season I call “just us,” and you might think my inner drive would slow down … but it hasn’t.
Because my surroundings aren’t the driving force. It comes from me, deep inside. I’ve invested my worth in the daily grind of doing it all. But there is too much beyond my control to make something so valuable hinge on something so volatile.
Maybe a new year does this to you too? You hear the sounds of “hustle harder,” so you set all the goals, begin new plans, and start a “foolproof” system. That approach has defined my Januarys for many years.
But recently I’ve started listening to a different voice that gives me more freedom. It’s a voice that has been there all along; I’ve just failed to hear it. This voice invites me to set aside all the demanding expectations and breathe a prayer. It calls to me with calming words, directing me to be still with God.
This is the voice of the Holy Spirit, the One who has been with me and in me since the day I said “yes” to Jesus, accepting His new life. He calls me to quiet and to peace. He calls me away from the hustle and hurry. As Habakkuk 2:20 says, “The LORD is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him” (ESV).
I’m learning to listen better to this still, peaceful voice and to remind myself throughout the day of the messages He sends me in His Word: “My soul, wait in silence for God only, For my hope is from Him” (Psalm 62:5).
Stillness goes against much of what my new planner seems to stand for. Yet it is everything my soul longs for: peace, contentment, and serenity. Now I’m beginning to see a new way where both my work and God's peace can live together.
No matter how much hustle you hoped for in January, maybe this month you can make a shift and focus on God’s peace and stillness. Whether you and I hit our goals or not, let’s redefine our Februarys. God’s peace is still there for us, along with His love.
Oh, Jesus, thank You for calling me to come and be still. It goes against not only the culture around me but sometimes the voice inside of me. Help me to still my heart and come to You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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Psalm 131:2-3, “But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the LORD from this time forth and forevermore” (ESV).
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