When I woke up this morning, I had a sharp pain in my left shoulder. It was so bad that when I attempted to get a coffe cup out of the cupboard with my righ hand, the pain got worse on my left shoulder. Throughout the day, I had to do everything slower than I'm used to doing it. walking, turning in my chair, eating lunch all had to be done much more slowly and deliberately today.
For those of you who know me, I don't do too much slowly. I'm usually a charge-ahead, get-up-and-go type of person. While it still hurts, I am learning the benefits of slowing down. Slowing down allows you to really hear others, because you are actually listening. In Ps 46:10, God reminds us through the psalmist to "be still, and know I am God" (ESV). When you take the time to slow down, you are able to hear what God is telling through His Word, through circumstances, and through His people.
Am I enjoying the pain i my neck? No, but I was able to get a taste of learning to slow down, and listen
1 comment:
Great points Brian! I liked your comment that stated "When you take the time to slow down, you are able to hear what God is telling through His Word, through circumstances, and through His people." The big dilema that I had was during the effort to obtain some silence in my life in an attempt to hear God speak.... that's when the noise really set in. I was comforted by the words of Henri Nouwen who said: "As soon as we are alone,...inner chaos opens up in us. This chaos can be so disturbing and so confusing that we can hardly wait to get busy again. Entering a private room and shutting the door, therefore, does not mean that we immediatel;y shut ou all our iner doubts, anxieities, fears, bad memories, unresolved conflicts, angry feelings and impulsive desires. On the contrary, when we have removed our outer distraction, we often find that our inner distraction manifest themselves to us in full force. We often use the outer distractions to shield ourselves from the interior noises. This makes the discipline of solitude all the more important." This was really the first time I realized that I was not alone in the struggle to obtain silence.
Rick Crowl
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