But wait! There's more!

Alright, I've already lied to you. I can't go to bed until I write about the title of the blog!

Sweet Silence. The most peace I've ever found in life has been in moments of absolute quiet, if not strictly silence. I'll give you an example.

When I was in Uganda last month (last month already?!), we would have early morning devotions as a group. But before that, we'd all have our own quiet time (a Christian-ese way to say a solitary time of reading the Bible, worshipping and talking with God). We spent several days at Gerenge, a camp on the shores of Lake Victoria, and quiet time there was the coolest of the entire trip because of the sheer beauty of the place. Seeing the sun come up over that glassy, lovely water, the mist draped delicately over it, with the birds making all sorts of interesting noises and the cool breeze gently brushing against my face, stilled my heart. In those moments of quiet time, I was able to let go of my anxieties and just let God speak to me. He touched my heart because I got myself out of the way.

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


Our lives are so, so full. They're too full, if I may generalize. They're full of being rushed to get here or there, they're full of technology and the pressure of being too connected all the time. They're full of our work and our play, and they're full of what others think of us. Our minds are full and crowded, so all we can hear is what is elbowing its way to the forefront of our consciousness. Exhausting and excessive, and we can't even see the degree to which it is so without stepping out of it.

In all the fullness of our lives, we can miss God really deplorably. So often, I don't listen. I don't see Him because I'm too busy thinking about what I need to do. It's only in the silence of our hearts and when our focus is on Jesus that we can hear what we'd otherwise miss, though He is constantly speaking to us.

Sweet, sweet silence. My hope is that you (and I!) will take moments to set aside all our other burdens (which are many) and simply let the Creator of the universe speak to us. If that means getting things off your chest that are keeping you from Him, then awesome. Do it, because He's so eager to be with you and you won't be able to truly meet with Him till you leave some stuff behind. (Gosh, writing that made me remember some of the things that I struggle to leave behind. I've convicted myself. Gah.) Sacrifice. We make sacrifices for the ones that we love.

So that was fun. My first ramble through what I'm in the process of learning and what I have learned that I want to share. Cool. We survived.

Goodnight for real now!

Let's Give This Blogging Thing A Whirl

Well, I've done it. I've created a blog, my own personal contribution to the millions of unread little literary masterpieces saturating the gargantuan, ambiguous creature we call the Internet. (That sentence was a doozy... at this rate, no one will ever read beyond my first paragraph!)

My goal in writing this is to document my own spiritual journey, in the hopes that it will a) help someone along who is struggling in their own walk, and b) possibly encourage someone fighting off the same demons (literally and figuratively!) to chat with me, so I can selfishly gain from this venture myself. Also, it's a great way to keep me accountable: what is written here should be evident in the way I'm living my life, and if it's not, then you need to confront me (lovingly, please!) so that I can change my ways. Deal?

Of course, this will also serve as a venue for all the strange, abstract and random thoughts that hit me. I'll try to keep them pertinent and interesting to keep your attention. Oh yes, I'm all about readers on this. If I may be so bold as to quote the great, the gaudy, the glorious Adam Lambert; "I'm here for your entertainment."

Okay, maybe not the best example.

I'll leave you with that for now. I now work full-time, so I have by necessity become an old lady. I go to bed super early these days because I get up early to fight morning traffic to Quincy! I feel like a real, live grown-up. But that's a thought for another day.

Sleep well, my eager multitude of readers. Sleep well.