silence

i've heard it said that introverts prefer the mountains and extroverts the ocean. While i wouldn't be who i am without my regular doses of vitamin sea (ha!), i can see the appeal of the mountains. i remember hiking through a trail up on a mountain last winter and being in awe of how absolutely silent it was when we stopped walking. Our breathing was the only sound that could be heard in the snowy wonderland. It hit me to the depths of my (introverted) soul.

This past week i've been thinking on the idea of silence. As a babysitter (or I would imagine as a parent) silence is definitely not a good thing. In my line of work, silence scares me because it means nothing is happening and that often means that i am needed. But i think that silence is sorely lacking in our society.

In his book "Jesus > Religion" (highly recommended!), Jeff Bethke writes:

 "I hear a lot of people say that the fear of death and the fear of public speaking are two of the main fears in my generation, but I disagree. I think it’s the fear of silence. We refuse to turn off our computers, turn off our phones, log off Facebook, and just sit in silence, because in those moments we might actually have to face up to who we really are.We fear silence like it’s an invisible monster, gnawing at us, ripping us open, and showing us our dissatisfaction. Silence is terrifying."

We are so quick to open our phones when we have a few seconds of time. So quick to reach out for another connecting. So worried about missing out that we don't take the time the re-charge and fully rest. 

i have a secret dream of going to space. Seeing the Earth from space is definitely one of the reasons. But the thing that i think is the most appealing, would be the clear, utter silence that you would be enveloped in when you stepped out of the space craft. i can't even imagine it, but it's something i crave. In this busy, non-stop world, we need to take time for silence. Time to "face up to who we really are." Time to enjoy where we are and where God has us, and time to listen to what God wants us to hear.