Silence

...can be scary. Terrifying actually. When nothing else is calling for our attention, we are forced to face ourselves. When the TV is turned off, the computer shut down, and the social networks put aside we have nothing to distract us from our own thoughts. And for that reason we often stay up late into the night watching or reading or scrolling or posting and check our phone first thing when we wake up. This is especially true when something heart-breaking or tragic is going on in our lives, because we will do anything to keep that thing from occupying our mind. While sometimes it's nice to have things that keep us from thinking too much, putting all of the distractions aside and facing your problems, sins, and emotions is crucial to a healthy heart and life.

First off I want to clarify something. Nothing I post is to brag or to say "I have mastered this lesson so now you should too." Usually everything I post is something I constantly struggle with and I use this blog to be held accountable and to let others know that they aren't alone in their struggles.

This is something I've felt convicted of for a long time but didn't want to come to terms with until just recently. I get so wrapped up in making sure I'm constantly doing something in order to keep my mind off of my problems or my weaknesses. 

Social networks are probably the biggest factor in this problem. With Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and now Vine in the picture, I could scroll and scroll for hours. This scrolling often leads to comparison. Thoughts such as "why can't I go on vacations like that?" and "why does their night look so much more fun than mine?" and "how does their hair always look flawless?" begin to consume my mind and all of the sudden I'm spending so much time looking at things that make me feel low about myself instead of soaking up God's word and hearing His thoughts about me.

God never wants us to think someone else is better than us or more loved than us. He gets oh so jealous when we choose to spend our time comparing our lives to others and believing the lies the world and the enemy are trying to tell us. He doesn't want that for us. He longs for us to sit down and devote time to Him. He wants us to allow His thoughts on us to define our lives. He wants to shower us in blessings and to see us be who He created us to be. It's silly to sit and spend time comparing our lives to what we see on social networks anyway. People only post the highlights of their lives but we compare every part of our lives to what we see. Spending time doing this will only result in disappointment and self-pity. But spending time talking to God and reading about His goodness will renew our hope and fill us with joy. The more time we spend hangin out with Our Father, the closer we'll get to Him, just like a relationship with an earthly father (but better, of course). The more time we spend in intimate conversation with our bridegroom, the more we will fall in love with Him, just like a relationship with an earthly groom (but also much better).

A lack of quiet time hinders us from acheiving our full spiritual potential and from developing an intimate, whole-hearted relationship with Our King. My prayer is that this week you will put down the technology, shut off the TV, and cut out some time to spend with Jesus. I promise you will not regret it!

After sending the people away, he went up a hill by himself to pray. When evening came, Jesus was there alone. Matthew 14:23

At that time Jesus went up a hill to pray and spent the whole night there praying to God. Luke 6:12

(even Jesus knew he needed his quiet time)

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Matthew 5:6

Picture I took while having my quiet time outside the other day. Just a tiny glimpse of God's beauty :)