My soul waits in silence for God only; from Him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold. I shall not be greatly shaken.
Psalm 62:1-2
For 17 years, I had to fly to Denver when I wanted to visit my daughter and her family. Thankfully, they moved here 8 years ago and they live only 3 minutes from us! But my daughter and I still have “Denver Days” together. We both love to play games, go out for lunch, do some shopping, stop for ice cream… all of our favorite things for several hours. It brings us great joy spending that time together.
A few days ago, we were enjoying a Denver Day. As we were playing a game, she remembered a song they have been singing at their church called “Make Room” by Community Music. It had made a personal impact on her life recently and she wanted to share it with me. (You can listen to it on YouTube.) She found the lyrics on her phone so I could follow along as we listened to the song. It’s a lengthy song, with several repeated stanzas – a beautiful prayer of surrender and a commitment to do whatever God wants me to do. We listened to the song, and I commented on the beautiful message. She shared how it had impacted her, and then we went back to playing games.
But the next morning, before even getting out of bed, one of the stanzas of the song came to mind:
“Shake up the ground of all my tradition; Break down the walls of all my religion.”
God used those words to speak to my heart as I spent my morning quiet time with Him. I’m very disciplined about getting up early in the morning, coming to the place where I can be alone to pray, read my Bible and a couple of devotional messages. I even have a system for writing down what I learn about God from what I have read, and how I am to respond to what I’ve read. Discipline is good, and even necessary, but not if it becomes a rigid routine.
I was convicted by how often my own “traditions” may get in the way of truly just being with God. The verse came to mind from Psalm 46:10: Be still and know that I am God. Whenever I read that verse, I usually focus on the word “still.” But that morning, the word “be” is what captured my thoughts. Just to “be” with God, worshiping Him for who He is, thanking Him for what He has done, and then listening to whatever He wants to say to me as I quiet my heart to listen.
I felt Him calling me to set aside my daily “traditions” and make room for Him to draw me even deeper into a love relationship with Him. I am asking Him to create in me a true heart of worship in the time I spend with Him. He reminded me that I am not just His servant, I am His beloved daughter. I want to make sure that my relationship with God is a true heart connection with Him, not a rigid routine. I want to “Make Room” for Him!
PERSONAL REFLECTION
How do you “make room” to be with God?
Do you feel the desire to make any changes in your life in order to hear Him speaking to you? You can even ask Him to give you that desire.
So beautiful!
Such good thoughts, Sherrilyn! Thank you for sharing them. It encourages me because I’m not as disciplined as you, but I think God makes sure to get my attention throughout the day. My life has been turned upside down and I just read in a grief manual today that I am not just missing my spouse, but a whole way of life that we shared for 52 years. No wonder I’m feeling so lost, not knowing what to do with myself. Yet, the Lord does draw me to Himself, and I’m so grateful He does!