Quiet.

Can you hear it?

Right now the house is quiet, except that I can hear the fan of the furnace forcing warmth into the air.

Quiet on the ice AnExtraordinaryDay.net

 

Sometimes I crave quiet.

There’s something peaceful and holy in those quiet moments.

My body relaxes.  My thoughts become like a child in a meadow… running free, arms in the air, twirling, and finally flopping down on the soft grasses and noticing a single blade, a tiny ant, and the scents of soil and wildflowers.

In the quiet my senses come alive.  My imagination awakes.  My creative cells gather energy.

In the quiet, the Holy Spirit speaks life and hope and joy into my heart.

 

Quiet - Geese sitting on the frozen lake - AnExtraordinaryDay.net

 

I’m reminded that following Jesus’ birth, there were angels, and shepherds, and then quiet.  It was in this quiet that Mary treasured all these things.   In the quiet, as she nursed the one who spoke our world into existence, her heart swelled with joy.  God had chosen her for this awesome responsibility of being the earthly mother to a heavenly son.  In the quiet she contemplated what God had done and she was filled with joy.

 

In the quiet I am alone with my thoughts.  There is no competition for my attention.

In the quiet God is there.  He’s been waiting for this quiet.

It’s in this quiet that he ministers to my hurting spirit.

It’s in this quiet that he breathes life into my soul that feels like it’s dying.

It’s in this quiet that I am able to let go of striving, failure, loss, and fear.

Those moments in the quiet sustain me for a while.

Noise enters back into my world and with it the world’s troubles and worries.

 

Quiet - Geese walking on the ice - AnExtraordinaryDay.net

 

We don’t live like monks, tucked away from the world.

Daily we must face the trials and stresses of daily life.

But, we CAN retreat for minutes into quiet.

We can turn off our devices.

We can sit and stare out the window, or stop our car at the park or by the lake.

We can stop doing.  We can just be.

When we retreat for those moments… we can hear God.

 

Quiet is a discipline.

Unlike everything else… quiet doesn’t call to us or vi for our attention.

Quiet waits.

God waits.

And in the quiet… we can enter into His presence.

And in His presence there is fullness of joy.

 

Quiet - Psalm 16 verse 11 - AnExtraordinaryDay.net

You will make known to me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.

Psalm 16:11 NASB

 

It’s Joy Day!

The day we set aside a portion of time to look back over the past week and count our blessings and give thanks.   This counting and giving thanks is another way to fill our hearts with JOY.

Won’t you join me in counting just ‘seven’?

I’ll start!

Thank you God for…

  1. a thoughtful gift at just the right time.
  2. hearing the cry of my heart.
  3. lovely blogging friends.
  4. sunshine just when I needed it for a photo shoot.
  5. Christmas.
  6. another possibility.
  7. your faithfulness.

Now it’s your turn!

In the ‘share your extraordinary thoughts” below, list your ‘seven.’ I dare you!

 

Thank you for stopping by today.
I appreciate you and your sweet comments make my day.

Joyfully!
Diane

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Comments

  1. Lucy Beliveau says

    Thank you Diane. Just reading your words calmed me down. I must have needed a calm moment or two because it feels wonderful!

    Lord, thank you for…
    1. Slowing me down so I can enjoy my prayers with you.
    2. My wonderful husband who plans and cooks all of our deliciou, healthy meals.
    3. For letting me be there when Samuel lost his first tooth!
    4. Giving me the want to send out Christmas cards with loads of information of our lives and questions about theirs! (I decided to only send cards to folks who would want to know how we were all doing…not the card that just gets our name written below the greeting)
    5. Giving me a week with pain I could handle.
    6. Letting me go to my Grandchildren’s Christmas program at school! Such fun!
    7. Letting me enjoy Christmas from home and not the hospital where I have been for the last 2 years.
    Lord, thank you for coming to life and being such a huge part of my daily adventures!!!

    • Diane says

      Lucy, I rejoice with you at God’s goodness and blessing in your life. What a gift this Christmastime has been compared to the past two years. I’m doing the dance of joy with you! [[hugs]]

  2. Nancy AstromskyEdina says

    I love your blog. A wonderful way to quiet my spirit.

    We are going to Advent Vespers and all the people in my life will be remembered.

    A new friend,
    Nancy

    • Diane says

      Nancy…that is just the nicest thing you could say. 🙂
      May your day be filled with God’s goodness and JOY!

  3. Debbi Saunders says

    Thank you God
    1. For a wonderful chance encounter with a Dear friend I have not seen all year!
    2. Made plans! to meet 3 different friends after the holidays and catch up!
    3. That I have a full time job in these unstable times!
    4. That GOD SENDS ME MESSAGES And Reminders when I desperately need them on bumper stickers and Church signs!
    5. The joys and hopes of the Christmas Season!
    6. Joy Day and Diane’s Friendship…
    7. For this wonderful relaxing Peaceful weekend! With alot of quiet time!

    • Diane says

      Debbi… I love how God sends messages to us in so many ways. I also love that your eye and ears are open to hearing them, too!!
      Thanks for sharing your heart of gratitude with us. I thank God for your love and friendship, too! {{hugs}}

  4. Gwen says

    I could list my troubles of which we all could say There are so many
    But on THIS BLOG we count, turn our eyes at this time to count it all joy.
    Paul was a great missionary. People were being saved. Churches started. But God had a different plan. To put him in prison as he grew old. Not even a pleasant one. And house arrest. But no freedom to go. Yet he longed deep in his heart to deliver these messages in person.
    In Paul’s deep troubles came his writings that God used to be most of the New Testament. Written because Paul could not go. Go. Go.
    I feel in some ways that the difficulty of s-t-o-p in my life does stop many things but opens doors to new places to share Gods Word. Today I will list places and people I have gotten to share JESUS’ good news with because I’m not able to move around and get around
    1. With my physical therapist
    2. New insights with my spouse
    3. Time to share via messenger to two young people who have recently lost parents. God guides my words. I’m His tool.
    4. With my hairdresser
    5. With a doctor evaluating me
    6. With a friend who needed prayer and God answered our prayer
    7. With a stranger who was sad about a grandmother having dementia…and how it changes things
    No. I would not be placed in any of these places before and if I’d been on the go go go. So in my difficulty, there is joy.

    • Diane says

      Oh Gwen… we so need to count don’t we? I can’t believe what a difference it makes when I do.
      Thank you for that reminder of how Paul was most influential in prison. I needed to read that Gwen.
      It’s a beautiful thing how God has used and continues to use you in so many amazing ways to introduce Jesus to so many.
      Thank you for speaking truth into my life as well.
      Rejoicing with you at God’s loving kindness…and for the joy that flows from you. [hugs]

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