journey onWord with us

This article will be the last of our archive articles from 2009, the year Journey OnWord started. Recently, I have noticed lots of pain and hurt, and from my perspective the best answer to life’s great stressors come from God Himself. So view this article in light of your world today, and respond as He leads.

Have you ever noticed how noisy your journey has become?  Non-stop vehicles of communication have overtaken our world, and we have embraced it. Because of all the great technology that we all love, our lives have journeyed further down the path toward the elimination of solitude, that we so desperately need. It would be less than honest of me to say that I am not caught in that very same web.  I need, as do you, a sense of quiet that tunes our ear to the Father’s voice.  Distractions (even good ones) will pull at the relationship every believer in Christ wants with the Father. Our Father desires for us to know Him, and wants to be the first priority on our journey.

When the issues of life get really tough, then we want God on speed dial.  Needing the Father in this way reminds me of something that happened many years ago, walking my daughter to school. As we headed into her school, she fell and hurt her leg quite badly. Immediate tears and pain jarred dad into action. My desire to protect her and fix everything went into overdrive. Nobody else needed to help her … I would!

It remains important to me, even after all these years that I was able to calm her down and meet her need in that moment of pain. My father moment begs the question, “Who else but your heavenly Father can really calm your spirit and heal your hurts?”  The noise generated by distractions and stresses in our lives so often drowns out the voice of a God who desperately wants to speak peace to our hearts.  Stop for a minute, get quiet, and meditate on a verse that can give perspective to the will of the Father and what He wants from us …

Psalm 46:10a (NIV)
Be still and know that I am God;

Psalm 46:10a (NASB)
Cease striving and know that I am God;

Psalm 46:10 (MSG)
Step out of the traffic! Take a long
loving look at Me, your High God,
above politics, above everything

In the context of danger and turmoil, what does God say? Whether you prefer “be still,” “cease striving,” or “step out of the traffic!” the intent is clear. Do nothing. Know God. The Message paints a great visual. “Take a long loving look at Me.” Are you getting to know the Father better? Or are the distractions and turmoil drowning out the Father’s voice? “Be still.”  “Cease striving.” “Step out of the traffic!” The Creator of heaven and earth wants to speak peace … and I believe you want to hear Him.

My role is not to tell you how to grow in silence and solitude with the Father, but honest hearts will confess whether they are often distracted from His voice. He is the author of the solution, and you don’t have to look any farther than Psalm 46:10 to find His answer.

All this technology is fun, and also has the potential to be a great source of spiritual good. But it should never pull us from the one true Source of all spiritual good. Don’t wait for really tough times to develop a quiet heart. Be still, and just maybe “the things of earth will grow strangely dim,” and the peace and joy of the Father will engulf your life — today!