The Silent Power That’s Always Available to You

By Courtney Elmer

One of my favorite parts of my day is my early morning walk (or bike ride) with my son AJ. But lately, I’ve been opting to leave my earbuds at home and challenge myself to a solid hour of silence with nothing but my thoughts (and an intermittent giggle from AJ) to keep me company.

And when I do, the amount of ideas that flood my brain is incredible

Maybe you’re reading this going, “I could never be silent like that for a whole entire hour!”

That’s how I felt, too. In fact, I thought I’d been doing a pretty good job of building in space into my day for me, but recently it dawned on me that the “quiet time” I was setting aside was never truly silent. I was always reading or listening to a podcast or writing in my journal … things that kept my body still, but my mind occupied.

So now, I’ve been purposefully seeking out opposite: – things that keep my body busy, but my mind still.

In fact, if you’ve ever wondered why such great ideas come to you in the shower, it’s because your body is in motion which allows your mind to relax … and ideas flow! The same goes for walking, biking or any physical activity as long as you do it without music (or podcasts).

Even 10 to 15 minutes can nourish your soul on a deep level. You might have even heard that silence is the language God uses to speak to us, and, in my experience, this is 100 percent true.

So, if you’ve been feeling overwhelmed lately and you can’t hear yourself think (much less hear God speak) … it’s probably because you can’t..

Instead, challenge yourself to a few minutes of true silence today, even if that simply means driving to the store without the radio. Then, allow your mind to wander and prepare to be amazed at what you might notice.

Are you up for the challenge? Shhh … just nod your head if you agree.