We all have seasons in life that seem to flow a whole lot smoother than others. The current season I find myself in is both exciting and terrifying at the same time. That’s the thing about seasons–they aren’t “all or nothing”. They are a definite mixture of all sorts of things. And in the midst, we have a choice. Resist? Or embrace to learn and grow?
There are so many things about this season I would love to resist, but in resisting, I short-change myself and those around me that I directly impact. So I surrender. To the awkwardness. To the pain. To the unearthing of things hidden within of which I wasn’t aware.
I don’t surrender in a way that has this season and these things controlling, defining or labeling me. No. I surrender in a way that says “OK, here it is. Let’s face this and work through it and allow God to use it for His glory.”
Does putting that spin on it make it easier? Not at all, but it does remind me in the middle of the hard that there is more than this. This life. This season. These hard things. And don’t we all need that reminder? That it won’t always be this way? That something beautiful will come out of our struggles?
I’m not much of a gardener–not for lack of my dad trying. He even told me one day how therapeutic gardening is. To which I laughed and replied “Dad, it’s just one more thing on my to-do list.” Maybe someday I’ll change my perspective. Maybe someday I too will think it’s therapeutic and actually enjoy it. That day, however, hasn’t arrived yet. In the meantime, even if I’m not a gardener, I do know this: before the seeds can be planted, the soil must be prepared. Worked up.
This not only applies to gardens, it also apples to our hearts and souls. Before seeds can be planted, our soul must be prepared. Worked up. What doesn’t belong (weeds) removed, soil softened and fertilized so that when the seeds are planted they can grow with less hindrances.
What does this have to do with “when words can’t do justice”?
Simply this. Sometimes there are no words for what we are going through. Sometimes, it is impossible to explain. And that is OK.
In a world where everyone has a thought and opinion. In a world where others voices are constantly bombarding us. It’s so very refreshing to sit back and say “I have no words, but you are welcome to come sit with me in my silence.”
In the Bible, in the book of Job, after he lost everything, his friends came and sat with him in silence. Later they gave their opinions, most of which weren’t helpful. But first they sat. Could we possibly learn from this? Sometimes there are no words. In those times trying to “come up with words” won’t do justice at all to what I or you might be going through. Not that words are wrong, obviously as I need them to write this, it’s just sometimes, silence is far better.
Yet that brings us to an entirely different thing–in this world full of noise we no longer know how to sit in silence. For the most part, it’s a lost art. One I am incorporating into this season. I fully admit, at first it was awkward. Very awkward. But I am discovering the absolute joy and beauty in silence. It’s in the silence I learn, grow and discover. It’s in the silence I hear. I hear more easily the whisper of God. And ohhh how I long to hear His whisper. For it’s His Words that unearth the unknown within and tell me who I really am.
So I ask…will you come sit in silence with me? But first, before we do, let’s be reminded of who God says we are: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8WK9HmF53w
