Finding Stillness Archives - Selah Reflections

The Continuing Journey of Cultivating Gratitude

The idea of giving thanks or being grateful usually becomes a hot topic in the fall as we approach Thanksgiving both here in the States and Canada. But what about the other months of the year? Shouldn’t we also be cultivating an attitude of gratitude all the time?

Admittedly, there are seasons of life when we ask, “what in the world is there to be grateful for right now?”

In a season like that, gratitude becomes a discipline and not something we naturally do or want to do.

It’s in the tough seasons when gratitude becomes essential

To walk in gratitude is a way of living that is inclusive, attentive, contagious, and theocentric.

Brennan Manning, Ruthless Trust

Gratitude is Contagious

If we let it, it can infuse every area of our lives, even on the bad days. As we develop a habit of looking for events, people, and small moments to be grateful for, they become easier to find. We can train ourselves to be attentive.

If you’ve met someone who lives a life of gratitude, you notice them. You like to spend time with them and be more like them.

Why not be that person for someone else?

Gratitude is a Gift

Learning to be grateful, no matter the circumstances is a gift we can give to God as a form of worship.

It is a gift we can give to others when we tell someone special what we are grateful for about them.

Gratitude is a gift we can give ourselves as we notice small moments, events, and special people in our lives.

Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

I Thessalonians 5:18

Gratitude is a Journey

I am nowhere near, “Give thanks in all circumstances,” it’s part of my journey to keep learning. Part of my morning quiet time is to keep a daily gratitude list, which helps me be on the lookout for things I can write down each day.

When I review my daily lists, more often than not it’s a list of little things for which I’m grateful. It’s a list of moments I would have missed along the way if I weren’t paying attention.

A Gratitude Challenge

Step 1: Over the next week, make a daily list of 3-5 things you are grateful for. There are some days the list will be easy and others it will be difficult, but make a commitment to write out your list each day.

Step 2: Send a friend a note telling them how grateful you are for them. You never know how much your words might be needed as you speak encouragement and truth into their day. Besides, who doesn’t like getting fun mail!

Today I am grateful for:

Bailey: He is so patient with me, even on the days I don’t feel up to going for a long walk. He is such a gift.
My Porch: I LOVE sitting on my front porch in the mornings for my quiet time. The wind gently blowing and the birds talking in the background.
My Business: While there are days it can run me ragged, I’m grateful for the opportunity to work from home and have the flexible work schedule I need.

What are you grateful for today?

Marta Goertzen

Marta Goertzen is an entrepreneur, writer and nature photographer. She daily explores the trails and beaches of the South Central Oregon Coast with her buddy Bailey. You can follow along on their adventures on Instagram. She is also the author of several books including her newest, “Confident Hope: A Daily Quiet Time Journal”. Start your own daily gratitude practice with our, “7 Days of Gratitude Challenge – A Gratitude Journal Starter Kit”.

selahreflections.com

3 Lessons My Garden is Teaching Me

With the help of my family, I was able to find and move into a new home last fall. To say it has been an experience is an understatement! I knew fairly quickly that I wanted a garden of my own. So, in late spring, I did it! I built and planted a small garden.

I’ve been surprised by just how much I’ve enjoyed the process of planning, planting, maintaining, and harvesting. I’ve also been surprised by how much I’ve learned along the way.

What Gardening Is Teaching Me

My garden dreams were (are) huge, but this year, I purposefully planned for small. You see, it doesn’t take long for my ideas to grow and far exceed my skill level and more often than not, the availability in my schedule to invest the time and effort required to bring the dream to life.

So here are a few ways in which gardening is teaching me some valuable lessons.

Lesson #1: Planning works

And, it doesn’t need to be difficult or complicated.

I’ve never had trouble making a plan. It’s the follow-through that I struggle with the most.

What my garden plan has shown me is that I have a tendency of making plans too big and complicated. These are plans I have no chance of succeeding with and eventually stop even trying. The plans I drew up for my veggie and flower garden were simple, stayed within a budget, and had built in flexibility.

Now that I understand this better about myself, it has helped me:

Enjoy my garden more
Dream about the possibilities for expanding my garden in the future
Easily maintain (and more importantly keep alive) my garden
Create plans for other areas of my life that I can follow through on

Lesson #2: Patience has its rewards

Patience is NOT one of my virtues.

There is an excellent reason I like to plant radishes in a garden. They grow fast. When a radish is planted, there is a lot of quick action :). They also taste so much better fresh. Since they grow and mature so quickly, it helps me practice patience as I wait for the rest of the garden to catch up.

Seeing those leaves pop up and the red of the radish start to push its way out of the ground shows that every stage of the garden takes time. If I exercise patience, the radish will continue to grow bigger and offer a more abundant harvest. The radish reminds me that with patience the garden will grow and create a harvest worth waiting for.

Lesson #3: It’s okay to go small

We are often told to dream big dreams and to play big or go home. And while there is a time and place for this way of thinking, it does not always apply to every situation.

By purposefully planning a small garden, I am not feeling overwhelmed, and I’m being able to handle the maintenance and care it needs. Keeping it manageable has contributed to my enjoyment of the garden.

There is stillness to be found in going small and enjoying the process.

Garden Dreams

In a previous post, I talked about cleaning out my email inbox and reducing the number of voices and opinions I listen to on a subject. Gardening has been no different.

After spending a little too much time on Pinterest looking for garden tips and ideas, I was in information overload with no clear direction. I reduced the overwhelming amount of information by picking a select group of people to listen to. That step helped me to cut through the noise and create a plan of what materials I needed and what to plant.

Here are the three resources I chose to pay attention too:

Wellness Mama and Square Foot Gardening
Lara Casey’s Gardening 101 blog post series. I also recommend following here on Instagram as she shares about her garden
Erin Benzakein of Floret Flowers has a drool-worthy Instagram feed, website, and gorgeous book called “Cut Flower Garden

While I love my veggie garden and will take what I am learning this year to grow and expand it next year, my garden dreams include a cut flower garden. The beauty of a flower fascinates me.

Visit a gorgeous flower garden in full bloom and notice how you feel. The beauty of each flower, the variety of shapes, sizes, and colors, and the amazing fragrance all combine into an experience. And that experience invites you to slow down, be in the moment, and find stillness.

And that invitation, my friend, I think is at the heart of my garden dreams.

What has gardening taught you?

Marta Goertzen

selahreflections.com

3 Reasons You Shouldn’t Be Afraid of Silence

When is the last time you remember sitting in silence? Is it even possible in today’s world? Clock ticking, refrigerator humming, house creaking, birds chirruping, cars in the distance, and planes flying overhead noise is everywhere even if we are not always conscious of it.

How do you feel in silence? Do you enjoy it or do you feel uncomfortable?

We often wish for a few minutes to simply sit and be. But, when we do finally get those few minutes what do we do? We turn on music or grab our phones to check texts, Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram.

Ask me how I know!

We wish for silence, but then we fill it.

Are You Afraid of Silence?

This question asked in a podcast that I listened to recently, and I had to think about it for awhile.

I’ve struggled with Tinnitus for years now. It’s an annoying ringing in the ears, that drives me crazy at times. There are times it interferes with my ability to focus or get to sleep. To help mask the ringing, I usually have some form of background noise running, like soft music, a fan running, or a great app on my phone called Noisli. Because of that, silence for me may have a slightly different meaning than for you.

As I thought about this question, however, I realized the answer is yes, there are times I’m afraid of silence. Add in feelings of overwhelm and stress, and that fear escalates.

Two Types of Noise

External Noise

I think of external noise like loud music playing, video games running, TV, children playing, running, or arguing, road construction. While some may thrive in these environments, others do not and may feel overstimulated and stressed.

Internal Noise

Oh, the joys of a brain that doesn’t stop talking. It also chatters, blames, and tries to keep that one thing you are trying not to forget in the forefront of your mind. Sometimes I think the internal noise is louder than external.

Why Are We Afraid of Silence?

While there are many reasons why let’s consider the following two:

1) We are addicted to being in motion and taking action.

Slowing down and experiencing a few minutes of silence can be a shock to the system. Our minds continue to run through our never-ending to-do-list. It sometimes screams at us that we are lazy, and not doing the important things.

2) We are afraid of our own thoughts.

If we slow down long enough to catch our breath and allow our body to catch up with our brain, we may not like what we discover.

Relationships that are breaking
Faith that has become stagnant
Neglected health issues
Habits that are not changing
Negative self-talk that says we are not worthy of self-care
Unrealistic comparisons to someone else who seems to have it all together

Knowing these kinds of thoughts will assault us if we sit in silence, it’s no wonder we run away from it!

3 Reasons You Shouldn’t Be Afraid of Silence

We all know that silence can feel deafening. Isn’t that a strange feeling? That the absence of noise can seem loud?

In today’s culture we don’t experience silence often so it can feel unnatural and odd, but experiencing silence is healthy and healing.

1) Silence is healing.

Learning to slow down racing thoughts helps us relax, rest, sleep better, and cut through the noise and focus on what is important.

I’ve started a new habit of making having a notebook and pen on my bedside table so I can jot down things I’m trying to remember. That way I’m not struggling not to forget and keep myself awake at night.

It’s also a good time to jot down a short list of things I’m grateful for and end my day on a positive note.

2) Silence helps us be present.

By taking a moment be still, we bring our thoughts away from the future and into the here and now. When we do that we can see what is important here and now like relationships, family, faith, and health.

3) Silence helps us hear better.

God rarely speaks in loud tones demanding our attention. He tends to speak softly, patiently waiting for us to hear. But we are usually surrounded by such loud internal and external noise we do not hear His leading and prompting. Sitting in silence with His word in our hands gives us the opportunity to hear better and trains us to listen.

And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. I Kings 19:12

It also helps us hear the needs of others better. It might be a child asking you to play or hearing the unspoken hurt in a friend that needs your understanding or listening ear. Learning to be silent helps us here these requests.

This week pay attention to those moments of silence, while standing in the grocery line, sitting in the car waiting to pick up the kids from school, or when you head to the bathroom. What is your first instinct? I bet many times it is to pick up your phone and see what is going on or what you may have missed.

Learning to be silent will not happen overnight, no new habit will. It will take time, patience, consistency and a willingness to be uncomfortable with the silence and not try to fill the space.

Keep listening for the “still small voice” If you are weary on life’s road; The Lord will make your heart rejoice If you will let Him take your load. ~ Hess

How can you practice sitting in silence this week?

Marta Goertzen

selahreflections.com

Creating a Practice of Finding Stillness

Recently I watched a video training course on productivity for creatives. About halfway through the course, it struck me; the instructor was teaching about developing a practice of creativity. Understanding this got me thinking of what other areas of life where this idea might apply. The first thing to come to mind was practicing finding stillness.

When we make the decision to develop a new habit or skill, it isn’t a “one-and-done” event. It takes a commitment to practice on a regular basis to incorporate it into our life.

Developing A Practice of Finding Stillness

Strangely enough, I can’t just decide to lose 10 lbs and have them gone by morning. (but it would be nice to try sometime don’t ya think?!). It’s a decision, and commitment, that I would need to make each day to make better choices in how I eat, and exercise.

Creating a habit of finding stillness is the same way. It takes practice and daily decisions to take the time to find these moments.

Building a new habit is not always easy. The saying “It takes 21 days to make a new habit” is not always true. Some habits can take months or even years to become part of your life. While others we can learn quickly and may only take a week or two.

When it comes to developing a habit of finding stillness, it takes practice, practice, and more practice. Some days that practice will go well, and others it won’t, or we get busy and.

What does it mean to find stillness?

Finding stillness isn’t necessarily about stopping all motion altogether. It often is more about finding that stillness in our hearts and minds. Often it is experiencing a peace beyond our understanding even when life is swirling crazily around us.

Finding stillness may be:

About slowing down to notice a beautiful flower on the side of the road
About a quiet morning walk as the sun rises
Sitting in a quiet spot with a hot cup of tea or coffee
Driving around town and soaking in the beauty of a gorgeous rainbow.
Watching in awe as the waves crash up onto the beach
Time spent in the Word and prayer
Going for a nice long run
Creating art
Even chopping wood!

Each day our practice of finding stillness will look different. I have yet to have to days in a row where that moment was the same, which is great!

First, it reminds me that this is something I need to practice every day, which I need to be alert, aware, and be on the lookout for these small moments each day.

Second, it reminds me that these moments are precious and if I rush around too fast, I will miss them.

A Practice of Finding Stillness Can Impact Your Life

In the past few months, I’ve realized that my practice of finding stillness has stalled a bit and I can tell as it has begun to show up in many different areas of my life.

One of the biggest areas impacted is my creativity. I’m seeing a correlation between seeking stillness, seeking beauty, and exercising my creative side. Now that my practice of finding stillness has not been as consistent as it should, my creative side has suffered as well.

The tricky thing about developing a skill, a habit, or practice is that if you stop working on them, you lose momentum and have to start over, sometimes from the beginning again.

When I get busy, my mind reverts to Go! Go! Go! Do not stop. Keep moving. Too much to do! When I listen to this part of my mind, the ability to find stillness seems to fade into the background, and it can be days or even weeks before I realize what I am missing. It’s then I need restart the practice of finding stillness.

One way I have found to help me develop my practice is to capture some of these moments with my camera and share them on Instagram with the hashtag #bestillmoments. It’s a tool I use that can help me keep my eyes and heart open, looking or moments to enjoy and share.

Do you have a practice of finding stillness in your life?

Save

Marta Goertzen

selahreflections.com

A New Year’s Gift: Delighting in the Unexpected

Welcome 2017!

2016, you were an interesting year. Parts were good, bad, odd, funny, and scary. But isn’t that often how every year goes? A bit of everything mixed in to varying degrees?

As I move back into a regular blogging schedule I’ve decided to ease back in gently and share with you a rare gift here on the South Central Oregon Coast. Snow. And not just a light dusting either. We ended up with about 5-7 inches depending on what part of town you were in.

In fact, I didn’t believe it would come! The weather man (or weather app in my case) is so often wrong that it was a pleasant surprise and delight to wake up and see the wonderland that had been created outside my door.

I couldn’t wait to get out, walk around, explore, and let Bailey go nuts. 🙂 He LOVES snow. Combine cooler temps and snow and he is probably just as happy or maybe even happier than he is on the beach. He would have stayed out longer if possible.

As we walked down the road exploring, I couldn’t help but smile. The last half of 2016 was rather bumpy, and the entrance into 2017 has been rough. It’s been tiring, frustrating, and I’ve been sick, so finding the energy to get out and do much of anything has been hard.

But not this morning. I was grinning from ear to ear, I couldn’t stop smiling in wonder at the gift that felt like was delivered just for me.

Once there was enough light I grabbed my camera, grabbed Bailey, and we headed out. It really and truly was a winter wonderland. I could hear children laughing, dogs barking, and one of the most wonderful sounds in the world, the perfect crunch of snow under my feet. Not too wet, not too dry, just perfect.

For Grade 3-6 I lived in a small town about 1 1/2 hours north of Calgary, Alberta. And each school day I would walk to school in just about any weather. It didn’t matter if it was rain, sun, dust storm, Chinook wind, or snow storm.

Many of my days were filled days of walking on top of the snow drifts, playing in the snow at recess, and once home, strapping on my skates, with the skate guards still on, I would glide down the hill in back to the outdoor rink.

That was my favorite time of year, I would stay out and play and explore for hours on end. I loved it. This was the first day in a long, long time that reminded me of those incredible winters days.

You have to keep in mind that snow, especially in this quantity, does not happen very often. We haven’t had a good snow dump in at least 3 or 4 years, so it felt like a treat.

When gifts like these come around, it is important take the time to enjoy them. Savor the details, create memories, and be in the moment. The meaning of Selah is to take notice because this is important, it’s an invitation to pause.

A gift of a morning walk like this did bring me into the moment, it helped me slow down, to look, and observe. It gave me an opportunity to look for treasures #alongthetrail and experience many #bestillmoments.

May this new year bring you similar gifts.

Happy New Year!

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Marta Goertzen

selahreflections.com

Gratitude is Contagious

Gratitude is a Gift

Gratitude is a Journey

A Gratitude Challenge

What are you grateful for today?

Liked this post? You might also like:

What Gardening Is Teaching Me

Garden Dreams

What has gardening taught you?

Liked this post? You might also like:

Are You Afraid of Silence?

Two Types of Noise

Why Are We Afraid of Silence?

3 Reasons You Shouldn’t Be Afraid of Silence

How can you practice sitting in silence this week?

Liked this post? You might also like:

Developing A Practice of Finding Stillness

What does it mean to find stillness?

A Practice of Finding Stillness Can Impact Your Life

Do you have a practice of finding stillness in your life?

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Welcome 2017!

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