Recently, I stopped listening to my iPod.
I mean, I completely stopped.
And since then, I have found myself more focused, more hopeful, and more motivated than ever.
What was I listening to? Not complaint rock or angst emo or anything. I mean, my ring tone is Mmmbop for cryin' out loud!
The stuff I was listening to was fantastic - terrific podcasts full of convicting messages, deep wisdom, and brilliant insights. But, I was finding the more I listened, the more anxious, overwhelmed, and depressed I felt.
I had so many voices bouncing around in my head that the only thing I knew to do to drown out the confusion was to listen to another podcast.
A viscous cycle.
There are so many messages, both good and bad, constantly being broadcast all around us. Many people cannot work, feel at ease in their home, or even fall asleep, if the tunes or TV aren't crankin'.
An addiction to noise.
And an aversion to silence.
For some, silence can be awkward, like a lapse in a struggling conversation. For others, it can create unwanted tension, be unnerving, or even downright scary.
I believe they have good reason to be afraid. I believe that in that place of silence, they would hear a voice both wonderful and terrible; A voice that would wreak their lives and cause them to change the way they do everything.
I believe they would hear the one voice we really should be listening to.
The voice of love and hope, the voice of wisdom and discernment, the voice of truth. It's a very quiet voice. Call it what you will, but I believe with all my heart that it is the voice of Almighty God.
I mean, I completely stopped.
And since then, I have found myself more focused, more hopeful, and more motivated than ever.
What was I listening to? Not complaint rock or angst emo or anything. I mean, my ring tone is Mmmbop for cryin' out loud!
The stuff I was listening to was fantastic - terrific podcasts full of convicting messages, deep wisdom, and brilliant insights. But, I was finding the more I listened, the more anxious, overwhelmed, and depressed I felt.
I had so many voices bouncing around in my head that the only thing I knew to do to drown out the confusion was to listen to another podcast.
A viscous cycle.
There are so many messages, both good and bad, constantly being broadcast all around us. Many people cannot work, feel at ease in their home, or even fall asleep, if the tunes or TV aren't crankin'.
An addiction to noise.
And an aversion to silence.
For some, silence can be awkward, like a lapse in a struggling conversation. For others, it can create unwanted tension, be unnerving, or even downright scary.
I believe they have good reason to be afraid. I believe that in that place of silence, they would hear a voice both wonderful and terrible; A voice that would wreak their lives and cause them to change the way they do everything.
I believe they would hear the one voice we really should be listening to.
The voice of love and hope, the voice of wisdom and discernment, the voice of truth. It's a very quiet voice. Call it what you will, but I believe with all my heart that it is the voice of Almighty God.
And I believe that there is another voice. The voice of someone who hates us and doesn't want us to hear that quiet voice, because he knows what that would mean for our lives. He has come to steal, kill, and destroy, but has found that all he has to do is drown us...
...in noise.
...in noise.
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2 comments:
Jessica, this is lovely and oh so true. I can go from music playing while I'm getting ready in the morning, to my car with music/teaching waiting for me, only to arrive @ work, turn on my i-tunes - and go through my entire day without one moment of quiet reflection. not cool.
Hello I am Emily and I am an i-pod/music addict.
So true. So completely true.
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