Sitting Still

I am not stupid. But my brain often hears slowly, especially in times of bustle and stress. I need to sit still, to be still, to hear the answer. If I listen well and long enough, I will know the thing to say, the thing to do. Trouble is, with all the noise and the lists and the expectations, stillness is at a premium and my spirit to brain connection is definitely not 4G/LTE. I often find myself in a bad cell, so to speak. And the download of answers I require comes slowly, like the slowest computer update imaginable. My temptation is to run around searching for better reception, when instead I need to realize that the better reception is within me but I must stop moving, stop rushing and wait, just wait, to have the answers distilled into my mind. 2% 3% . . . incrementally so very slow to reach download complete.

When the answer comes, whatever the answer is, the stillness is worth it and I wonder every time why I waste my energy running around searching when I know that I must quiet myself in order to have the answer. I rarely search successfully. Most often, my successful searches come when I sit still and allow the answer to find me. Maybe that's why I require such wide margins in order to work effectively in life. Maybe one of these days I will get better at protecting my margins instead of constantly opening too many windows, too many apps until my operating system freezes and I am forced to sit and wait--what I should learn to do in the first place. Sitting still. Still sitting still. One day the lesson will stick. Until then, I am grateful for Psalms like this.

"Be Still and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10