Today’s Monday Morning Inspiration is about importance of being still.
Yes, you heard me correctly. It’s not about how much you can accomplish today – what tasks, chores, or assignments you can get done at home or at work. It’s all about developing the discipline of being still – that is being still before God.
This week, I’m practicing this discipline myself at our church during a special 40 Hours Eucharistic Devotion. During this time, praise and prayer is centered on the most Holy Eucharist, over a period of 40 Hours.
Some trace this devotion back to Milan, Italy and St. Charles Borromeo, the Archbishop of Milan. He not only wrote about the practice of Eucharistic Adoration but incorporated it into his life by praying continually before the Eucharist.
So, this week I’m committing to being still in the presence of God for one hour. It’s a small commitment but an important one in developing a discipline of stillness and silence before the Lord.
You Can Learn to be Still
I’ll admit, sometimes it’s a struggle for me to be still. Many times my to do list and my priorities get in the way. When this happens, it definitely affects my day. My thoughts tend to be all over the place. And as a result, my actions tend to be all over the place too.
Because I’m a ‘doer’ and I thrive when I’m doing something, I never really thought that I could learn to be still.
But I’m finding out that I can.
In fact, I’m being drawn to this stillness – this silence – more and more.
For example, I have started a weekly routine of attending Eucharistic Adoration at our church where I pray, read, or simply sit for silent reflection. But, above all, I pour my heart out to God, turning my many worries over to him. When I do this, I usually leave with a sense of peace and with a quiet confidence that I didn’t have before. Somehow, my burdens don’t seem quite as heavy.
I also attend a weekly Centering Prayer group at my church. Each week, I meet with a wonderful faith-filled group as we sit for a 20-minute period of silence in the presence of God. (A future blog post on Centering Prayer is coming soon in case you’d like to try it!)
You Can Be Still Anywhere
It’s important to know that you don’t have to be in church to be still in the presence of God. You can be still before God anywhere – in your home in the quiet of the morning, while sitting in traffic in your car, or while lying in bed at night before falling asleep. God lives inside of you!
So for today, I encourage you to try this practice. Take a few minutes to sit and be still before God. Quiet your mind. Let your thoughts come and go, paying no attention to them and not judging them. Just be still before God and let him do the talking. Just listen and be open to what he has to say.
Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! – Psalm 46:10 (ESV)