Our culture encourages chaos. I feel pressure every day to be doing more, join more activities, become more involved. Our world never settles, and challenges us to keep up. I don't know about you, but I can't keep up. My soul craves a slow pace, craves the ability to be present and enjoy every moment. My soul craves peace, stillness and rest. Particularly rest with the Lord.
I feel this especially during the holiday season. There's so much to do; so many things to prepare for all the festivities, so much to do to be ready for family to come visit, so much travel, so much to get done as the semester wraps up and we get ready for break. There's always so much, but more than ever, I just want to curl up with a blanket and hot chocolate and watch Christmas movies with my family. More than ever, I just want to turn my diffuser on, play worship music, and spend time with the Lord.
Because the more we hustle and bustle and stay busy, the more we miss out on. The more we try to gain, earn, and achieve, the more we lose.
Think about it.
The busier we are, the less time we have to spend with our family. The busier we are, the less time we have to rest. The busier we are, the less energy and mental space we have to actually be present and enjoy our lives. The busier we are, we have less of everything to give to Jesus.
So the busier we are, the emptier we get, because we keep draining ourselves without refilling our souls with the Lord.
This holiday season, I don't want to be empty and drained. I want to be satisfied and abiding in the Lord. I want to be present and actually enjoy every moment. I want to make memories with my people and sit at the feet of Jesus to learn from Him and correct my perspective towards the holidays.
I imagine that you want this, too.
How do we do this? In the midst of the natural craziness and chaos we experience every holiday season (but year round, really), how do we still find rest, joy, the energy to be present, and the time to be with the Lord?
Well, first of all, we can't do this without the strength and grace of God. So bring your thoughts and cares to Jesus, and ask Him to help you. Ask Him to give you the strength and the ability to prioritize Him and the people that matter most, and to know how to manage our energy this season. Here, I'll pray with you.
Father, I am so thankful for the holiday season. There is so much about this season that I love and cherish, but Lord, there's also a lot that wears me out and distracts me. Please help me to keep my eyes fixed on You and remember the real reason for the season. Help me to prioritize what You want me to prioritize, and make time for the things that matter to You. Please help me to keep making time for rest, and please help me to stay present and soak in all the memories that are in the making. Thank You Lord, for Your grace and Your strength this year. Thank You for all the ways You're working in me this season. Amen.
But also, to make this happen, it takes some sacrifice on our part. Our lives will never automatically slow down to a more comfortable pace (I take that back...but hopefully we don't have to experience another pandemic in our lifetime). We have to surrender our lives to the Lord and make an intentional effort to keep our priorities aligned with God.
I'm not saying that we need to start striving, working harder, and getting our lives in order. However, I am saying that we can't keep going at our current pace and expect everything to magically change. We have to make choices that honor God and refocus our lives on Him.
Currently, in my life, this is looking like choosing to be still in the little moments. I wake up earlier to spend extra time with the Lord, and in the silence of the morning, I am able to draw near to God without any distractions. When we have worship music playing around the house, sometimes I simply sit, close my eyes, and soak in the lyrics. At school, when I have a break, I often put my phone down and pause to pray.
Friends, it's more about the little moments where we choose to focus in on our Savior and surrender to Him than making big life change all at once. It's more about pausing and being still in the everyday busyness than halting our entire life. I believe that God wants to be apart of our lives and be in the little moments with us, because the reality is that most of our live is not made up of big moments. We aren't always experiencing the mountain-tops, life-altering, heaven shaking moments. But we are experiencing the everyday wearisome working and hustling, and the key to slowing down and prioritizing our lives is by beginning to reshape those smaller, more mundane moments.
Practically speaking, here's what this may look like for you:
Spending 5 minutes in stillness and prayer before and after school (or work, or after the kids come home) to refocus on God and get in the right attitude to take on whatever is coming up
Having designated "no phone" times (such as committing to being off your phone from 4-6 to spend time with family)
Create a list or visual representation of your priorities and use that to help you determine how to fill your schedule
Be okay saying no to have down-time
Play worship music often; this is good to help fill your mind with godly things and bring some peace to your day
Stay grateful - keep a running list on your phone of all the things your thankful for
This holiday season, let's commit to being present and slow down a bit. Let's check our priorities against God's priorities and make adjustments as needed so that we can reflect Christ more. And let's not be afraid to pull back, say no a few times, and make intentional time for rest.
I am so excited for this holiday season, and not for all the presents, time off from school, or food (although I am excited for that too). I'm mainly excited for the time I'll get with Jesus, the memories I'll make with my family, and the little moments of stillness. I pray that you and I are both able to glorify God this season as we navigate balancing our time and discovering how to choose stillness in the everyday.
How are you working to prioritize stillness and silence in your life this season? Let me know in the comments down below! Or, if you have any prayer requests, I'd love to hear those as well so I can pray alongside you, so please drop those in the comments as well.
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