‘In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.’ Is 30:15
The other afternoon my friend and I went out for a coffee. We wanted to spend a little time together catching up on each other’s news. Although I had been to this cafe before, I had always been on my own then, so hadn’t realised what was so evident that afternoon. The whole time there was loud music blaring out.
We ended up shouting at each other just to be heard. I wondered why the next generation needed to be in constant noise. It was because of similar noise of music in the supermarket that I changed my supermarket.
On this particular afternoon I was pleased to get home and sit in the quietness of my garden as my headache gradually subsided. I have recently installed an app on my phone to distinguish different bird songs but on this day I closed my eyes and just listened to the rustle of the wind in the trees, distant child laughter and those singing birds. How fortunate I am that my garden is a quiet place with no noisy passing traffic.
No wonder Moses went up the mountain to escape the clamour of the Israelites , Elijah sat by the gurgling brook and Jesus sought out the desert places. Quietness equates to thinking and praying time.