I Believe in the Power of …

The table, friendship, silence, rest, words, goals and curiosity.

Photo by Libby Penner on Unsplash

Over the holidays, I compiled a short list of things I believe in. And I wanted to explore them here with you.

The power of the table. On the night before Jesus was betrayed, he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” Then he took the cup and proclaimed a new covenant in his blood. This practice was to proclaim the Lord’s death until he returned. So we probably shouldn’t be surprised when the early church broke bread in their homes, receiving food with glad and generous hearts. The table disarms and unifies us.

The power of friendship. As I broke bread recently with a friend named Randy, he pointed out how our families are shrinking. He lost an uncle last year who was the organizer of family events. Without him, he’s noticing the tendency for the rest of his family to drift apart. “And that makes this feel even more important.” He pointed back and forth between us. I’ve felt the same way — all the way to my bones. Without close friendships, life would be difficult to navigate. With it, it feels like people are helping you to carry your burdens.

The power of silence. As much as I need the table and friendship, I need times of silence. But there are different types of silence. If I’m in the house, I need complete silence sometimes, which is hard to come by. If I’m outside, I need the gentle trickle of a stream or birds chirping sort of silence. Both types of silence help me to recharge and think. When I’m cranky, the first thing I do is assess if I’ve had enough silence. As difficult as it is to secure sometimes, I realize that without it, I cannot be as engaged spiritually as I ought to be, nor can I be as creative.

The power of rest. Elisabeth Elliot once said, “Rest is a weapon given to us by God. The enemy hates it because he wants you stressed and occupied.” I believe this. But I also believe that rest entails more than just sleep or downtime. It also includes mental, spiritual, emotional, social, sensory, and creative rest. This article is helpful to delve into all seven types. When I’m out of balance, I can sense it. In recent weeks, I’ve disabled most of the apps and functions on my phone while I sleep at night, and the sensory rest I feel when I wake up is amazing.

The power of words. You are a word person. You wouldn’t be here otherwise. My guess is, you can point to a book, a song, a poem, or a quote that changed the trajectory of your life. Recently, I inherited some of my friend’s CDs. I pulled maybe thirty of them out of his collection and put them in my car. When I’m waiting in a parking lot, I’ll pull out the liner notes/lyrics and get lost in them like I did when I was twenty. Those little pamphlets explain how a certain lyric was birthed, or sometimes they just help me understand what exactly a certain lyric should be and it brings clarity.

The power of goals (and accountability for them). Some will argue against goals in favor of a system, as in, don’t just list a goal but have a specific plan in place. This is actually what I’m talking about when I refer to setting goals. If a friend tells me she wants to finish writing her book, I’m the one who usually helps her set a deadline, then follows up. I find that when I know someone is going to ask me about my follow-through, I’m much more likely to actually succeed. I have accountability buddies for walking, writing, and a few other things. Goals plus accountability is a powerful, one-two punch.

The power of curiosity. Curiosity drives us to dig deeper. And sometimes, when you dig deep enough, you encounter a new passion or solution. For many years, I’ve been interested in road trips. I love taking them, reading about others who take them and watching movies in which characters take them. As I explore that, I developed a new passion for following and reading about thru-hikers. While I’ll never actually do one myself, it’s given me all sorts of interesting tidbits to include in my writing.

How about you? What do you believe in the power of?