still

I was recently having lunch with a friend who asked me, “How did you acquire the peace that you have? What book did you read? What spiritual discipline did you practice?” My immediate thought was, “Wow! That’s a very good question!” After several minutes of reflection, an answer entered my thoughts.

How does one acquire peace? The answer is quite simple. First, you sit quiet and still, doing nothing, for a long enough period of time that you finally begin to hear what God is saying to you about you. Then, you continue to sit quiet and still as you slowly unpack and process what God is saying to you about you. This is followed by more sitting quiet and still as you wrestle and come to terms with what God is saying to you about you. At this point, you sit quiet and still as you slowly detach from and let go of all that God is saying to you about you. More sitting quiet and still occurs as you embrace and develop an acceptance of this entire process. And then one day as you are sitting quiet and still, you begin to recognize that something is different about you (don’t be surprised if this new awareness results from having someone share that you seem different to them); that you possess a sense of peace that you’ve never had before. You can’t seem to remember how many years have passed as you sat quiet and still, doing nothing, but you are grateful for these many years just the same because of how they have developed and deepened your heart and soul. You are keenly aware that what you have “done” (as you sat quiet and still, doing nothing) has been rather hard work. Indeed, it is a Herculean task for humans to sit quiet and still, doing nothing, as they listen and unpack and process and wrestle and come to terms with and detach from and let go of and embrace and accept. This gift of peace that God has graciously and generously given to you (for it truly is a gift) has been very “hard-earned” for you. It is, in fact, the hardest-earned gift that you will ever be given and receive. In addition to giving you peace, it will also fill your mind, heart, body and soul with a deep life and love and joy. And then what do you do? You sit quiet and still, listening to hear what God is saying to you about how he wants you to express and demonstrate your gift of peace with everyone who comes across your path today . . . and everyday.