Turn Down the Noise

When was the last time you let God lead you into silence? Not just a break from the noise, but a real, intentional pause?

Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on Unsplash

As I’m writing this on Wednesday morning, it’s an overcast, 48-degree day, and I have my window open. Birds are conversing with one another. A baby redbird of some sort spins 360 degrees on my fence line, maybe out of sheer joy. Tree branches sway gently in the wind. And my breathing is slow(er).

The older I get, the more I crave pockets of silence. Not necessarily silence, silence, although, that’s okay too. But I mean the type of silence that doesn’t involve ringing phones, doorbells, television, music or voices. I need periodic breaks from man-made noise and interruptions.

Instead, I’ll gladly take noise from the wind, birds, locusts, a crackling fire, a rushing river or a babbling stream. But you can keep the buzzing and crawling insects, thank you. I don’t want to give you the impression that I’m Grizzly Adams or anything. I like air conditioning too much for that.

But after a lifetime of man-made noise, I think Psalm 23:2–3 (ESV) means more to me than ever before: “He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.” The AMPC says, “He makes me lie down in [fresh, tender] green pastures; He leads me beside the still and restful waters. He refreshes and restores my life (my self).”

These are the words of David. Presumably, as a shepherd, he would have spent most of his waking hours in green pastures before becoming a king. Yet, look at the verb transition here: makes → leads → restores. Apparently, even David needed God to make and lead him to outdoor silence, which led to his restoration.

Strong’s Concordance says this about the word “restores” in this verse: “The Hebrew verb ‘shub’ primarily means ‘to return’ or ‘to turn back.’ It is used extensively in the Old Testament to describe physical returning, such as returning to a place or person, as well as metaphorical returning, such as turning back to God or repenting from sin. The term is also used in the context of restoration, indicating a return to a previous state or condition.”

If I may be so bold as to put all of this together, it would seem like there are times when God needs to remove us from all the noise in our respective worlds to bring us to a place of restoration and/or repentance.

When was the last time you let God lead you into silence? Not just a break from the noise, but a real, intentional pause in which you stepped away from the demands, distractions and constant hum of modern life to simply be still?

Maybe that’s exactly what your soul needs right now. Maybe restoration isn’t something we have to chase but something we receive when we finally slow down enough to listen. Find a quiet place, even for a few minutes today, and let God restore you.