Stillness
Luke 8: 22-24 (NIV)
One day Jesus said to his disciples 'Let's go over to the other side of the lake.' So they got into a boat and set out. As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. The disciples went and woke him. 'Master, master, we’re going to drown!'
He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm.
Stillness. What comes to your mind? Are you begging God for some stillness at this moment? Is having stillness in your life hard? Do you enjoy it?
I feel that stillness is something hard to come by in our present daily life. There are so many things and distractions vying for our attention. Even when we are alone at home or sitting at a table waiting for a friend, our buzzing phones pull in our attention. For the past couple of years, I have made a determined effort not to go straight for my phone the second I am alone. I've tried instead to notice and give my attention to what is going on around me. You’d be surprised at the conversations you hear, the people you see and the interesting events taking place! It still feels weird at times, but for me it’s been life-giving because it enables me to break out of a sterile virtual world with no boundaries, and instead to focus in on the real stories unfolding around me.
For me, as I’m writing this devotional, stillness isn’t about not being busy or the absence of thoughts; rather it’s about existing in stillness amongst the chaos. Cue Jesus showing us the way in the story of the calming of the storm. It’s amazing because we get both aspects of calm and stillness here. We see the inner stillness of Jesus within the storm, and we see the calming of everything external: wind, waves, the disciples!
I believe that when we intentionally still ourselves even in the busiest times, it allows God space to move and us to rest. Let this encourage you today that you can have the same stillness as Jesus.
Prayer — Father, give me the strength to find your stillness in my life. I pray in my busyness that you give me rest. I pray in the calm, you will move.