~ Experiencing Stillness in a Busy World ~

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” 

Psalm 46:10

Caleb enjoying the falling leaves!

One thing I loved about growing up in Virginia was the leaves changing colors and then falling all over the ground. Now, I know for my dad, who had to clean up those leaves in the yard, he probably didn't care for it, but for all of us children, it was a huge pile of fun! We would rake those leaves into the biggest piles, get on the swing set and swing as high as we could, then, at just the right time, we would jump off the swing into that gigantic pile of leaves. It was so much fun! We would dig our way out and then pile them all up again. We would do this for hours! Another fun thing was to take those freshly fallen leaves, put them under a piece of paper,take a crayon, and color over it to see the shape of the leaf appear. I know these things may not seem fun for the 21st century kid, but for those of us in the late 70s and early 80s this was good clean fun!

Being in the mountains last weekend brought back a lot of those memories as I shared them with my kids.  It was a simpler time! I enjoyed being able to reminisce about the fun I had growing up in a day without all the technology and abundance of activities they now have at every turn. I enjoyed hunting for leaves with my kids as we searched for just the perfect ones. Enjoying their beauty as God had turned them different beautiful colors.

Some of our treasures from leaf hunting!

So many times, we parents get caught up in the craziness of this modern day.  We overload our kids schedules with so many activities that we turn our vehicles into taxis and our homes into just a quick "stop and go". Our family time involves passing each other in the hallway as we rush out the door. And I'll go ahead and say it, we as parents sometimes fail to show our kids what it means to be still and know that HE is God!

If I learned nothing else this weekend, God so sweetly reminded me to teach my kids how to take time to enjoy God and his beautiful creation. To take time out of a busy schedule and be still in the presence of God and listen for his voice. How can we truly hear his voice when we allow the noise of the world to take our full attention.

I was reminded this morning of the Israelite people as Joshua was just about to lead them across the Jordan River into the Promised Land. You can imagine their excitement and eagerness to finally reach their destination. After all those years, they were finally about to reach the Promised Land! But just before entering the water Joshua speaks to the people:

Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God."

Joshua 3:9

Joshua, the great leader he was, gathered the people and instructed them to stop and listen to what God was telling them to do. Even in the midst of the excitement and eagerness to go, Joshua reminded the of the importance to be still and listen to God's instruction. Wow! What a great leader!

We as parents have the same responsibility. In this fast paced world, we especially need to exemplify to our children the need for putting God first in all our activities. We need to set the standard for them on how to stop in the craziness and be still before the Lord. I, personally, don't want to raise up the next generation to be more stressed out then this one is. I want my children to know how to be still before God and allow him to direct our activities and plans for our lives. It is my responsibility! Now that is a sobering thought at 5:30 in the morning! Lol!

As you go about your day, take time to be still before God with your children and allow them the experience of rest in a crazy world, the beauty of creation, and the fullness of God's Word in their lives. We don't have to wait for a vacation to do that. We can do this right in our very homes, in our backyards, or even in our cars! It will be time well spent!