Quiet Time

Quiet can be defined as: tranquility; freedom from disturbance or alarm; civil or political repose. Peace and security come to mind when I think of quiet. The first image I had was of a swing and a little girl just enjoying the moment of gliding through the air with not a care in the world. Can THIS time of quietness be ours? Remember the days we could be a child and spend the summer playing? I loved to swing. I still love to swing. I have spent countless hours on a swing especially as a child. Oh, the freedom I felt as I lifted up into the air and then came rushing back. The emotions were two-fold: soaring up to the heavens with delight, the anticipation of the wind blowing by; as well as coming back down to earth in a quick descent that meant total trust in the swing. We can be like a child on the swing when it comes to our lives. We can have that quiet tranquility that comes from a complete trust in God and anticipation of what God has for us. Choosing rather to have quiet starts with a complete surrender to God’s will. As Christians, we can trust that no matter what we face in life, God is in control. In fact, He has already walked the path before us, with us and ahead of us. I have a phrase that Mellie and I repeat when a spider is nearby, or a task seems too much for her 7-year-old mind to wrap around itself. This phrase is, “fact over fear”. We discuss the facts of the matter and then pray and walk through the task, the moment, the situation. The Bible backs this phrase up in II Timothy 1:7 when Paul tells Timothy, “for God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” When we can be satisfied that our spirit is tranquil than we can begin to enjoy the beauty of that childhood wonder – the swing.

SOARING (to the heavens) IN JOY

Oh, that moment when you finally have the swing going high enough that you just know you will soar to the heavens. The complete joy in that moment surpasses all the work you put into getting there. What work do we need to do in order to get complete joy in our lives? Joy isn’t something you wake up one day and just have. Joy comes from a complete dependence on God and learning to choose it daily. This isn’t always an easy task but once we have joy, it become easier and easier to keep it. Where does our joy come from? Galatians 5:22 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy,…” Joy is a fruit of the Spirit. It comes in direct correlation of living filled with the Holy Spirit. How can we be sad when we have THE Comforter in our lives? We see signs so many times that say “choose joy” but how can we choose? Joy doesn’t just spring on us but when we work hard to soar spiritually then the joy just naturally follows. Reading God’s Word, praying, living with the Comforter, serving God are all wonderful ways to choose joy. Soar to the heavens with this newfound joy because then when life comes around to being hard, when we come rushing back to earth, our joy will abide and remain in us.

RUSHING (to the earth) IN JOY

We’ve worked so hard for our joy. We’ve soared to the heavens with joy and now life is working it’s hardest to have us come rushing back down from all that we have coming at us. Work is hard. Our children are sick. Our debts seem to be mounting and we just can’t seem to take another step in our busy lives. The weights of this world are just too much, and we feel ourselves losing that sense of joy and that peace that should be abiding. Remember the swing? Do you remember as a child the sense of adventure that came from the ride back down to earth? The swing would soar up to heaven as we pumped and pumped our legs and then the complete freedom we felt as we rushed back down to earth only to soar again. We were swinging backwards so why were we not terrified? We had complete trust in that swing to take us safely back to earth and soaring once again. Now fast forward to our lives today and think of those weights trying to keep us terrified and think instead of the adventure we can turn them into by knowing that our joy is secure in our Comforter. Luke reminds us in 11:13, “how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?” The Holy Spirit is there to keep us soaring and rushing through life with joy because He is with us. He brings safety, security, peace and yes continuous joy. He is why people who suffer from chronic pain, like Kim Phuc Bui can have a smile every day and joy in their lives. Read her story here as it will change your life. He is why that mom who lost their child can walk with a peace in her heart knowing she will see her baby again. He is why my mom who lost her husband of 50+ years can smile daily and have such strength of character while walking alone now in this world. He sends joy, comfort, friends, hope and so much more no matter the situation we all face. He is our quiet and He is the reason that no matter the circumstances: soaring or rushing through life, we can have a quiet tranquility that even the world will wonder at. Peace, joy, calmness can all serve to give us a life of quietness and rest no matter what direction the swing is sailing.