How To Know The Blessings Of Listening In The Stillness
Do you like the “sound of silence”? Do you thrive in stillness?
Years ago, I could easily spend time with the only sound being the thoughts rattling around in my head. But in recent years, it seems like I’m restless when it’s completely quiet.
I used to need total darkness and quiet to sleep but then … Rev needed a nightlight to be able to see where he was going to avoid falls and the sound of the external ventilator helping him breathe became a source of comfort and peace.
So, I still sleep with the nightlight on and after a couple of silent sleepless nights, I quickly purchased a sound machine.
Stillness is defined as:
- The absence of sound.
- The absence of motion.
- The absence of disturbance.
The truth I’ve learned is that I’ve become terrible at being still … just terrible!
I am always listening, watching, thinking, talking, and doing.
But David wrote…
The Lord is my shepherd;
Psalm 23:1–2 (CSB)
I have what I need.
He lets me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside quiet waters.
And…
Psalm 37:7
Be still in the presence of the Lord,
and wait patiently for Him to act.
Why? Because it is when you and I are still in the presence of the Lord that He gives us “what we need.”
Stillness does not come naturally for most of us.
Most of us live in a noisy, information-cluttered state of busyness with no idea how to push pause and find the calm we desperately want and honestly … need.
Even if we get a few moments without noise and activity, it’s hard to settle ourselves to achieve the stillness our souls desire.
Look at another definition of stillness…
Stillness is doing nothing. It is quieting your thoughts and simply being.
When was the last time you did that?
God’s Word tells us that the Lord wants us to be still in Him.
“Be still and know that I am God.”
Psalm 46:10
Our Father invites us to know Him in stillness.
I love God’s words to Elijah when they meet together on Mt. Horeb in 1 Kings 19:11-13…
“Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.
And a voice said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
1 Kings 19:11–13
I can almost hear the Lord saying … “I’ve shown you who I am, now let’s talk.”
We’ve seen Him at work in us and around us but now, like Elijah, He’s inviting us into the stillness so that we can hear the sound of His gentle whisper saying, “Let’s talk.”
That’s an important part of prayer.
Jesus often got away from the crowds to spend time on the mountain talking with His Father. He loves hearing our prayers and He always listens even when we cry out to Him from the chaos. But He also wants us to know that the best way for us to hear Him is to get away to the stillness where we can speak and LISTEN.
When you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.
Matthew 6:6
I’m making it a goal to embrace my time with God in the stillness through these weeks coming up to Holy Week and Easter.
I want to quietly listen for His voice so that I can get to know Him better. I don’t want to be content to live surrounded by noise and distractions, I want to SEEK and KNOW the Lord, my God. I want to do a better job of listening in LOVE asking Him to give me what I need to TRUST and OBEY.
I know it won’t be easy. Trying to walk away from the distraction of technology is challenging. And even when I succeed … my mind is always busy.
But I believe that with God’s help, I can change that … and I believe you can too.
Let’s pray…
A Prayer for Help to Listen in the Stillness
Father God, thank you for this sweet reminder of Your willingness to hear our prayers. Your Word says that You are caring and compassionate and that You want to help us in our time of need.
It also says that You want us to listen. You gave us Your Holy Spirit to help us, comfort us, teach us, and remind us of everything that Jesus said. You gave us the Sabbath as an intentional day of rest.
Please forgive me for the countless times I’ve failed to listen when You’ve tried to speak truth to my heart. Forgive me for the times I’ve let worldly ideas drown out Your words of wisdom.
Help me in the days ahead to set aside time to “be still” in Your presence. I want to KNOW You. I want to grow in my LOVE for You. I want to KNOW Your will and TRUST and OBEY it for the glory of Your holy name.
Please grant me Your grace. Surround me with Your peace. Guide me with Your truth. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
Another translation of the phrase “be still” in Psalm 46 is “cease striving” … and the Hebrew word for “cease striving” is “raphah” meaning – sink down, let drop, let go, be quiet, become helpless.
Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.”
Mark 6:31
I want to take Jesus’ advice and quietly rest in the presence of the Lord.
May we make it a goal to…
- Turn off the things that distract – and pursue stillness for at least 20 min. each day.
- Come into that time humbly surrendered and willing to patiently wait on God.
- Listen to know, trust, and obey God’s perfect will.
Stillness and complete surrender do not come naturally to me. And when it comes to listening and obeying, I can be more likely to tell God what I want and ask Him to get on board and bless it than I am to wait for His guidance and do it His way.
Please tell me I’m not the only one!
But even in the struggle, there’s Good News in God’s promises…
Peace
You will keep the mind that is dependent on You
Isaiah 26:3 (CSB_
in perfect peace, for it is trusting in You.
Strength.
The Lord is my strength and my shield;
PSalm 28:7
my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped.
Therefore my heart celebrates,
and I give thanks to Him with my song.
Courage
John 16:33
“I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.”
May the Lord bless you with His peace, strength, and courage as you intentionally spend time with Him in the stillness.
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Sitting in silence/stillness isn’t easy for me, either, Deb. You’re not the only one! But, with you, I will endeavor to submit myself to God’s presence and surrender to Him in all things.
God bless you!
It helps to know I’m not the only one! Thanks, Martha! I want to be still more over so that I might grow closer and closer to Him. His grace, mercy, and love overwhelm me. Blessings, my friend!
Dear Deb,
I am so, so, sorry to hear of the loss of your husband. I lost my husband after 40 years of marriage when he was 59. It has been 6 years and I still miss him everyday. I understand about the sleep as it took me almost 2 years to be able to get a good nights sleep and it’s still not the same. But the Lord has brought me through so many dark times and He never gives up on me, in my grief. I know He will bring you through the darkness also we just have to persevere and trust in Him always. In my prayers and may God bring you His comfort and strength. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen
Thank you for your kind words, Annamarie. You have walked this path. I’m sorry. I do believe that He will walk with me and give me the strength and comfort I need each day. My prayer is to focus on the moment I’m in, with God’s help. I don’t want to worry about the future. The Lord is faithful and I’m so very thankful. God be with you and bless you!
This was a powerful and wonderful lesson! I thank God for you my friend!
Thank you for your kind encouragement, Sandy. I’m glad it blessed you! Blessings to you!
I love the quiet, sitting in stillness and being at peace. It is a must have for me. Even at early age, I loved playing with my four rowdy brothers, but still I had to go off and just be alone at times. If I don’t get my quiet time, anxiety takes over my entire being! I am like Sue, (my dear friend whom I’ve made through your blog) who mentioned just the other day, she gets up early, early to start her day with God. I do that same thing! It is my favorite time, when all is still and quiet. And I like to end my day that same way. Just sitting in the dark and the quiet. The Holy Bible (YouVersion) App says about prayer; “sometimes you may have lots to say, but other times you may need to just sit in silence.” I have found that to be so true! In quiet time and stillness I hear God’s Whispers and through those whispers, I find strength to cope with the endless noises of the world!
My prayers and thoughts are with you, Deb. And every post you share with us is a blessing to my heart and soul. May your mind and your heart find the peace it needs, in the stillness and quiet moments with God. Love you, dear friend. And love you too, sweet Sue, my kindred soul! Have a blessed day!
Kathy,
I love you too my sweet and dear friend. I am so glad to see your post today. I have missed you. How did the bedroom turn out? I bet it is beautiful.
I am like you and have to have time to myself too. It is a must. I can’t function without it.
I hope that you have a wonderful evening and I keep you close in my prayers and heart.
I love learning this about you, Kathy! Rev was the youngest of four boys with a younger sister. I’m sure you did need to get away by yourself and enjoy peace and quiet. Rev used to tell me some really entertaining stories from growing up with boys. I was an only child for 11 years when my brother was born. I had lots of quiet time. I do love my time with the Lord, so I’m learning to block out the distractions so I can listen as well and study and talk to Him. Oh, I am so very thankful for His patience and love. Blessings and hugs, my friend!
Oh Deb, my sweet dear friend, you can not know how this post today hit home for me. I have the same problem with quiet time. I have a problem staying focused. My mind wonders. I love my time in the very early quiet mornings with the Lord. But—-my brain just stays so busy. And, I had to chuckle when you said you are more likely to tell God what you want and to get on board. I am so guilty of that. I think I talk too much and God must laugh and say, if I would talk less and listen more, I may hear him better!! Anyway, it is so easy to be distracted and technology can disturb us. I have made it a point now to turn off my phone when I have devotional time, eventhough I know that at that time of the morning no one is calling anyway. They are all sleeping most likely.
I love the verses you gave and I have most of them on index cards and read them so much, over and over again.
I am just so thankful for you and for this post today. I have been beating myself up so much lately over this very issue. It is good to know that others have the same problem at times.
So glad to see Kathy’s reply too. I miss her when she doesn’t write in.
I love you both, my sweet dear friends. Deb, I pray for peace for you. I pray for quiet, peaceful sleep for you too.
Thanks for this, Sue. I don’t typically turn my phone off and that’s a great idea. I often get text messages during my quiet time and can so easily be distracted by them. I’m going to work at leaving my phone in the other room in sleep mode. I’m glad the verses blessed you! You bless me, sweet friend! Have a wonderful day!
Myself here in Australia and where i work is complete stillness,only birds,the insects and the sound of the wind blowing across the land,when it rains the frogs bellow out like a symphony,yes its Gods creation,yes you can connect much better to the universe and look up at the stars at night in all Gods glory,i love peace and quiet to gather the thoughts and pray to God,blessed all those with peace in their hearts.
I love that, Paul. It sounds like a wonderful peaceful place to live. You’re so right … we can connect with God through His creation when we pause to be still and listen. May the Lord be with you and bless you!
Godbless Deb,peace,love joy and happiness,take care.
I loved Elijah’s words on Mount Horeb. Lord Jesus give me patience and wisdom to always have peace and be still to listen to your words and apply them in my life. May the Trinity enlighten my heart to trust and seek you to give me quiet and stillness and peace to listen and do your Will. Deb May God bless you and give you peace and quiet.
Amen, Ana! I want to quietly listen with faith and obey His will as He reveals it. He is so gracious and good to love us so much that He speaks to us personally. Oh, to glorify Him in all things. God be with you and bless you!
Hello, Deb,
The Bible is full of references to the utmost importance of being quiet, listening, and being still.
I lead and mentor 16 women in my Bible study group, and I recently brought the importance of stillness to their attention.
The Bible says that God speaks in a still, calm voice. When I sense God whispering something to me, I quiet my emotions and in the quiet stillness I hear God. Oftentimes it’s the Holy Spirit whispering to me leading a path He wants me to go. John 14:26.
He also speaks in my dreams letting me know that He is always with me.
Sometimes it’s a warning dream to show me the enemy’s plan and crush them in prayers.
Know that you are in my daily prayers.
In grieving take it one step at a time.
In every step you take, God is with you.
Blessings always.
Because of Calvary,
Raquel
Thank you for your kindness, Raquel. I appreciate your encouragement and especially your prayers. God be with you and bless you!
Hello Deb, I continue to pray for you as you grieve for your Rev, I pray you may know the comfort of the Holy Spirit like a warm hug when you need it 🥰.
May I please ask for prayer I struggle greatly with Tinnitus and find being quiet very difficult as the noise in my head is so loud all the time . I also have terrible migraines a lot of the time too. My health is really bad as I have mentioned before and we often look after our grandchildren at least two mornings before school and three evenings for dinner, often more and that is two to six grandchildren, we also have a painter in this weekend and a guest coming to stay so it is generally madness.
May I ask that you pray I can cope with all this as on Monday morning at 7.15 we have our Grandchildren arriving for Breakfast and I have to be up and ready and we will have our guest with us too.
It is all too much at the moment as feeling particularly unwell at the moment.
thank you so very much in advance for your prayers blessings Mary 🥰❤️
Thank you for your prayers, Mary. And yes, I’m praying for you. Tinnitus is such a struggle. I pray that the Lord has given you peace, patience, and absence of pain this weekend and that He will give you all the strength you need throughout the week ahead. Blessings and hugs!