Silence

I don’t know about you, but I hate silence. 

It seems like our culture does too.  We are surrounded by sound: music, TV, radio, YouTube, etc….all the time.  Many people will keep at least one ear bud in so that they have a sort of daily sound track.    

Even as I am writing this I am listening to music through ear buds in a very packed and loud coffee shop, who is playing music of their own.

To me silence is loud.  Silence forces me to pay attention to the small things.  In fact, silence forces all of us to pause and pay attention to things we might usually just push down inside us.

There is an amazing song by Twenty-One Piolets called “Car Radio.”  The simple premise of the song is that someone stole his car radio and so now his car rides are silent, and it forces his to deal with his inner thoughts.
The season of Lent, it is a great time to bring back a practice of silence.  If we can get through the awkward part of silence then we can move to a place where we work through the thoughts we often suppress.

Maybe this is why our culture likes noise? It distracts us from the things that take effort and time within us.  It distracts us from the yearning deep within us in our souls.  Noise helps us go through the routines of daily life without being interrupted by the idea that “MAYBE IT ISN’T SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE THIS?” 

I think our world and our lives need more interruptions from the noise.

The gospels share that Jesus often went away from the noise to be in silence and pray. 
"News of [Jesus] spread even more and huge crowds gathered to listen and to be healed from their illnesses.  But Jesus would withdraw to deserted places for prayer." (Luke 5:15-16 CEB)  

Maybe you can find time in the morning or at night for silence, or even just simply turn off your car radio and drive in silence and allow God to work on your soul, unpacking some of the boxes you keep deep within.

For me, I take a morning walk with my dog, Shalom. (#morningwalkswithShalom)  At first the morning walks started because our dog needed something to get out all of her energy and I needed a more exercise, but now it has turned into a 30 minute silence meditation time every morning; no music, no screens, just my dog, silence, nature and God. On our walks, I am often able to see amazing small things in creation I would have never seen if I was distracted.  God speaks to me on our walks and works on my soul. 

How can you make time for silence? What do you need God to work on in your life?

Here is the Twenty-One Pilots Song.

​-Chris