It is dead silence in the camper this morning. Steve has left to take his mom to the eye doctor and help her run some errands. I am sitting at the C@TL "desk" and Ike is sleeping on the sofa. I even turned off the air conditioner as my husband likes it meat locker temperature. There are 800 children at Lake Yale this week for summer camp. You would never know it. I cannot believe how quiet it is. Sometimes when we step outside you can hear games/activities in the distance, but inside nothing. The occasional car or golf cart passes by which feels odd, but mostly it is just silence.
Typically we would have the TV on. Not necessarily that we were watching, but Steve would have checked the weather and then it would be left on - for noise. When I was single it was on for the same reason. It just made it feel like there was someone else there even if I was reading or cleaning. Well there is no TV in the camper. There is a spot for one and even a cable. My mom let us borrow one to see if we could get even a few channels, but it didn't work. I believe when they switched over to digital it became impossible to get anything through the antenna airwaves. So Steve is returning it to my mom today.
The first couple of nights here, we were a little befuddled about what to do. Steve got a lot of work done on his sermon series. Me, I twiddled my thumbs a lot. After several nights, I suggested we look at Netflix. It is very inexpensive at $7.99/month after a free 30 day trial. So two nights ago, after I had made our first camper dinner, we watched a movie. Then last night, after returning from additional 5 year old birthday celebrations, we watched a movie and one episode of Frasier. It was awesome. We weren't sitting there channel surfing in an attempt to find something we both would enjoy. Many times that leads to watching junk because "there is nothing on!" these 250 channels.
If one is never silent, then how can one ever listen? If there is always noise, how can you hear God? We are told to cry out to the Lord as in 2 Samuel 22:7, "In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I called. From his temple he heard my voice and my cry came to his ears." God will hear our thanksgiving and our pleas. But, we must keep quiet if we are to hear back from Him. Exodus 14:14 says, "The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent." Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me." It is so important that you are in tune to God's voice.
Silence is not just you not speaking. It is finding yourself in a place of quiet. No screaming little ones, no ringing phones, no radio/TV, just no noise. While the Lord can speak to us through things, I believe He is most present when you give him your whole attention. We will benefit in many ways from the silence here at the Lake. We will be more productive and utilize our time more effectively. My hope is the peace and the quiet here draw us closer to the Lord, allow us to focus more on His word and His will and that we will hear Him guide and direct us.
In His service
Mally
Typically we would have the TV on. Not necessarily that we were watching, but Steve would have checked the weather and then it would be left on - for noise. When I was single it was on for the same reason. It just made it feel like there was someone else there even if I was reading or cleaning. Well there is no TV in the camper. There is a spot for one and even a cable. My mom let us borrow one to see if we could get even a few channels, but it didn't work. I believe when they switched over to digital it became impossible to get anything through the antenna airwaves. So Steve is returning it to my mom today.
The first couple of nights here, we were a little befuddled about what to do. Steve got a lot of work done on his sermon series. Me, I twiddled my thumbs a lot. After several nights, I suggested we look at Netflix. It is very inexpensive at $7.99/month after a free 30 day trial. So two nights ago, after I had made our first camper dinner, we watched a movie. Then last night, after returning from additional 5 year old birthday celebrations, we watched a movie and one episode of Frasier. It was awesome. We weren't sitting there channel surfing in an attempt to find something we both would enjoy. Many times that leads to watching junk because "there is nothing on!" these 250 channels.
If one is never silent, then how can one ever listen? If there is always noise, how can you hear God? We are told to cry out to the Lord as in 2 Samuel 22:7, "In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I called. From his temple he heard my voice and my cry came to his ears." God will hear our thanksgiving and our pleas. But, we must keep quiet if we are to hear back from Him. Exodus 14:14 says, "The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent." Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me." It is so important that you are in tune to God's voice.
Silence is not just you not speaking. It is finding yourself in a place of quiet. No screaming little ones, no ringing phones, no radio/TV, just no noise. While the Lord can speak to us through things, I believe He is most present when you give him your whole attention. We will benefit in many ways from the silence here at the Lake. We will be more productive and utilize our time more effectively. My hope is the peace and the quiet here draw us closer to the Lord, allow us to focus more on His word and His will and that we will hear Him guide and direct us.
In His service
Mally
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