Silence

I spent some time over the last two days in “relative” silence.  It wasn’t total silence, but I noted that more often than not I could hear new sounds in the house, road noise from the street, and occasionally something from the field out back. 

With the busyness of a normal day, sometimes I can’t hear what is going on around me.  As I type this for example, I have a Christian radio station playing at a rather hefty volume.  It got me to wondering, what do I miss when I’m immersed in noise?

Frist, I miss the happenings of my surroundings.  It becomes a lot of “just me” that is concentrating on the task at hand.  While that in itself is not bad, occasionally there is more than just the task.  A respite from a never ending onslaught of self-generated background noise might produce insight into a new idea or need. 

Second, I miss messages from the Holy Spirit on what I’m supposed to be doing or a lesson to be learned.  When there is a combination of noise entering my ears and noise scrambling around in my head, I can overlook something inspirational that was designed for my benefit.

Third, I miss the opportunity to contribute to someone or something near me that needs my support, guidance, or an ear.  These opportunities are important to the groups of family, community and self. 

So, join me in committing to periods of silence during the day.  I know many of us can’t afford a lot of time, but every minute helps.