I was doing my "quiet
time" this afternoon
("quiet time" is a
loosely defined term
within Christendom used
to describe a supposedly
daily time of prayer,
Scripture reading, and
meditation) which is
rather unusual for me -
normally I get up early
and do it first thing in
the morning... that just
seems to work better for
me. However, it
was a fairly full
weekend, a long drive
home from Louisiana, and
a full week so far; my
sleep hours are hurting
right now, which means
that - surprise! - my
early morning quiet time
has been tossed out the
window in favor of a few
more precious minutes of
sleep.
Today I made time
to sit down and have my
quiet time in the middle
of the afternoon,
instead. This is
usually not a very wise
thing for me to do, as
by this time of the day
there are a million
things bouncing around
inside my head that are
screaming for my
immediate attention
(phone calls to make,
emails to respond to,
blog ideas to explore,
shows to book, proposals
to write, etc.).
And yet unlike most
days, today I was able
to put it all aside for
a little bit and really
focus on pouring my
heart out to God,
basking for a few
precious minutes in His
quiet solitude. I
was reminded of a
comment I heard in a
session yesterday about
our reaction to a
glorious sunset, the
view from a mountain
top, or laying down in a
snowbank watching the
Northern Lights (Aurora
Borealis) dance above
your head:
Silence.
Awe.
Wonder.
You don't want to speak
- in fact, you don't
want anyone to speak!
Why is it so quiet in
art galleries? I
wonder if it's because
when presented with
beauty, we are
speechless - to speak
would be to interrupt
the moment and lose that
sense of wonder.
If we truly understood
and believed in the
beauty of Jesus Christ,
the Creator King, what
other response would be
appropriate other than
silence? We would
stop our griping, stop
our requesting, and
simply marvel at the
beauty of He who is.
I love to be in those
quiet times, silently
taking in the beauty
before me - I remember
watching my wife come
down the church aisle
towards me and there was
nothing I could do but
marvel at her beauty and
cry, knowing that she
was willingly offering
herself to me.
Lord, teach me to enter
my quiet time - silent
time - with you the same
way.
Normal Rockstar
http://www.jeremythiessen.com
