Spiritual Rhythms
By Elisa Morgan
I stood at my kitchen window, taking in the evening. The sun was setting in fuchsia and tangerine tones. Lavender clouds streaked the horizon. Lights dotted the far-off fields beneath the blackening mountains. In this moment of quiet, I felt convinced of the existence, the presence and the complete trustworthiness of God.
And to be honest, kind of antsy.
I find trust challenging in silent seasons of spirituality. I prefer God’s dramatic life-infused interventions where he flexes his muscles and demonstrates his power. Answered prayers. An invitation to serve when I’m feeling unwanted. A check in the mail when my bank account is depleted. A horrible diagnosis healed.
Quiet seasons? I don’t like them so much.
Why should I? I live in a results-oriented world where value is assigned to the tangible, proven, completed and graded entities. Slow, silent, beneath the surface, hard to measure – these aspects hold little interest – much less respect - for the average human. Plus, I’m a “3” on the Enneagram. I like achievement. And achievement – noticeable and measurable achievement - isn't always clear in the quiet.
And yet with God, the silent seasons are intrinsic elements of his ebb and flow, of the rhythm of his work in our world.
The writer of the book of Ecclesiastes says:
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
Live and die. Weep and laugh. Mourn and dance. Tear and mend. Come and go. In and out. Up and down. Back and forth. Push and pull. Life moves in rhythm. God made it that way.
Why should our relationship with him be any different? Loud and quiet. Both mattering. Both shaping. Both necessary. Yes, there is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.
Give us eyes to see your coming and going, ears to hear your voice and your silence, hands to hold your presence and your absence, and faith to trust your unchanging nature in all seasons.
Elisa Morgan is the cohost of the new podcast, God Hears Her. She is also the cohost of Discover the Word and contributor to Our Daily Bread. Her latest book is When We Pray Like Jesus. Her other books includeThe Beauty of Broken, Hello, Beauty Full, andShe Did What She Could. Connect with Elisa @elisa_morgan on Twitter, and @elisamorganauthor on Facebook and Instagram.