Shut Up & Pray

We are uncomfortable with silence. We think it is awkward so we fill the empty space with noise. We blast the radio in the car. We rant about all the negative things that went on at work. We gossip. We turn on the T.V., even when no one is actually watching it. We put our ear plugs in when we go out for a run. We are constantly invaded with noise.

Have you ever thought of silence as a gift?

There is a time to speak, but there is also a time to just be quiet, be silent and pray.

There is a side to me that is kind, thoughtful, encouraging and optimistic. There is also a side of me that can be angry, impatient and self-centered. I know what it is like to say something positive one minute and be totally impatient and negative the next. I am human, but being human does not give me the excuse to behave this way. I want to do better. I want to use my emotions and words for good. As Christians, we need to strive to do better. I opened up my Bible to find Psalm 19:14:

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

The tongue is one of the most powerful tools God has given us. It can either speak life or speak death. Our words tell a story of how we love God.

Words direct our path. They show how much we love our family and friends. Even our tone of voice and how we react to situations says a lot about our character and how we value God.

I wonder what kind of world it would be if we would just shut up, thought before we spoke, and prayed.

I wonder what kind of world it would be if we would simply pray instead of worrying and complaining about outcomes that are not even outcomes yet.

I also wonder what kind of world it would be if we would be silent, still and wait for God to answer us back.

'Cause I know, He is trying to.

We have to listen.

It is okay to be silent.

Whoever you are. Wherever you are. I encourage you to just appreciate the silence. I encourage you to be mindful of your words and the power they have.

I encourage you to pray and trust Him a little bit more.

When you kneel before God, you can stand up to anything.

So, simply stop. Stop doing and start praying.

Value your words and speak life.

And wait to see what God will do.