Quieting the Noise

It was a pretty stressful morning trying to get out of the door on time. A few things popped up that needed my immediate attention so I got out of the house a bit late. We were out of coffee at home so I stopped at my closest drive through coffee place. As I paid for my dark roast with extra cream, the barista said with a concerned look on her face, “You look really tired, if you don’t mind me saying.”

I remember realizing that I didn’t have my makeup on yet. I had to save that for the five minutes I usually have in the parking lot before heading into work.  I don’t really remember my response to the barista because that’s when I started letting all the noise in.

Please hear me when I say this, it is not about the barista’s comment. I honestly think she was genuinely concerned about my apparent lack of sleep. What I am writing to you about today, is more about the heart.

I let that little comment stress me out even more. As I let that settle in, more things started bubbling up. “People always tell me I look sick or tired when I’m not wearing any makeup. But do I really look that awful? I guess I better put some extra concealer today!” Then I started thinking about unrelated things. In fact, for the first half of my day I ruminated on all the things. Then it hit me!

“I have been obsessing over all these unimportant things because of one offset comment… from a stranger…”

This changed the course of my thought process. I decided I could get mad about the comment, or I could remind myself of how God sees me and what He wants for me.

You see I was letting in all the noise and it was distracting me from my purpose that day. It is so easy for us to let the noise of the outside world (and even our inner world) distract us from what God wants us to do. We can even let it distract us from just spending time with God.

On this particular day it was an innocent comment, but it can be anything. A status online, a paragraph in a book or scene in a movie. A look from a stranger or even your teenager, lol. All of this is noise, it can be louder than the truth and it will bombard us if we let it. But here are some things I like to do when my head and my heart get too noisy:

Listening to God’s Word being read. (Yes, there’s an App for that, lol!) 

Closing my eyes while quietly listening to my favorite life giving worship songs.

Calling a friend who will speak life and pray with me.

Detoxing from social media.

Smiling at a stranger.

Casual coffee with a friend.

Doing something special for someone I love.

These things help me remember who I am, Whose I am and what I am here for. It’s my prayer that some of these suggestions help you too!

So, I’d love to know... What are some things you do when you need to quiet the noise? Or what helps you recognize when other things are too loud? Let us know in the comments!

Post by: Jimmie Lee DiIanni