Don't Waste Your Coronavirus, Part 5: Be Still

In the 1600s French mathematician, physicist, and theologian, Blaise Pascal, famously wrote in his Pensées: “All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” Pascal made this argument long before the invention of the devices that distract us from God, ourselves, and reality. Even in the pre-internet, pre-smart phone, pre-industrial revolution 1600s people found it difficult to be alone, sit still, and squarely face themselves, truth, and God. Pascal was making the point that humanity's problems and lack of happiness stem from this restless root.We don't want to waste this coronavirus moment, but most of you probably are wasting it. Instead of creating the space and the stillness to attend to your 1 thing and experience deep transformation from this season, you're filling your time and distracting your soul with trivial Zoom meetings, needless webinars, the constant noise of news and social media, and gurgling anxieties that float around in your head but that you never quite deal with or let go of. Zoom? I'm Zoomed out. Emails, webinars, and invitations from well intentioned organizations advising me on how to level up my leadership during this season? I'm ignoring and saying no to all of it. I don't need more advice and tips right now, I need to pay attention to God. What I deeply crave is to sit still, commune with God, face some beautiful and painful reality, and submit to how God wants to deeply form me during this time.Don't mishear me. May of you are first responders and in lines of work where you are working many more hours than usual right now (or out of work and hustling to find new work), and you may not be able to create as much Blaise Pascal/sit still space as others can. And, to the rest of you I'm not saying sit still all day. Personally, I'm busy and productive right now with full work weeks. But my main priority right now is my 1 thing, which requires a deep reset and depends on me sitting quietly in a room alone with my Heavenly Father. Sitting still is very difficult for me to do, which is one of the indicators why this is very important for me to do it. It's often the difficult things that are the most worth doing. And for most of us, learning to sit still to face the real God and our real self might be one of the most difficult, transformative, and redemptive habits we ever cultivate.So, please stop your hurrying, your Zooming, your self distancing, your God distancing, your concern for others signaling that's really just you avoiding what you really need to face. Maybe you just need somebody to give you permission to sit still. Let me give you permission: Do less. Sit still. Face God. You're unconditionally loved by God, so you're safe to sit quietly in a room alone with this God and see what happens.[mc4wp_form id="9268”]