Standing still has never been my strong suit. Every morning used to start with a mental checklist - tasks to complete, goals to reach, progress to measure. Time felt like a resource that needed to be maximized, each moment carrying the weight of expectation.
But God has His own way of teaching us about stillness. Exodus 14:14 speaks directly to this: "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." These words paint a picture so different from our natural instincts, especially when we're used to taking action, making things happen, pushing forward.
In those moments between seasons of life, when everything seems paused, we often feel the urge to fill the space with activity. It's like watching sand slip through an hourglass, feeling that unnamed pressure to somehow make it flow faster, to rush toward whatever comes next.
Yet stillness holds its own kind of strength. Still moments aren't empty spaces; they're filled with possibility, with preparation, with internal work that shapes what's to come. God works in similar ways, using our waiting periods not as empty spaces but as times of preparation for what He has planned.
Waiting doesn't mean nothing is happening. Our spirit often grows most during times of apparent stillness. It's in these spaces that we learn to listen more carefully, to notice the subtle ways God is moving, to build the kind of strength that comes not from doing but from being.
When we embrace these waiting periods instead of fighting against them, something changes in how we experience time. The pressure to make things happen eases. We begin to recognize that every season has its purpose, every moment its own gentle unfolding in God's perfect timing.
Each moment of waiting carries purpose - whether we see it or not. Sometimes the greatest growth happens when we stop trying to force progress and instead allow ourselves to be still, trusting that God is working even when we can't see the results.
The waiting isn't punishment; it's preparation. It's not delay; it's development. Just as a garden needs seasons of rest before new growth emerges, our spiritual journey includes seasons of apparent stillness that are actually laying the groundwork for what's ahead.
In these moments of waiting, we're not just passing time - we're being positioned. Every second spent in faithful stillness is an investment in our spiritual growth, an opportunity to build the kind of trust that can only come through learning to be still and know that He is God.