Keep Your Eyes Closed And....

                           

There's a dry erase board on my desk.  It's plain, it's white, it's magnetic, and it's smudged all over from different phrases and sayings being written on it to give my work a little oomph here and there.  Writing inspiration mostly, but sometimes just general life encouragement.  My most recent quote:

Keep your eyes closed, and your mind wide open...

I really like this phrase.  For a writer, it helps your imagination soar a little bit.  It sounds so freeing.  The first time I heard this quote was in the movie Bridge to Terabithia, and it was all about allowing your head to expand and turn into amazing worlds that have never been seen before!  Exciting, right?  Yeah, it got me pretty excited too.

If only I had known how dangerous putting that quote on my board would be...

Now, the quote itself isn't dangerous.  It's great and inspiring!  It's a path to your imagination.  Don't misunderstand me there.  The dangerous part came from what I made that quote into. 

You see, I have a problem. 

Ok, you got me.  If you've been reading my blog, you know that I actually have quite a few problems.  But I'm referring to just one of those problems, and it's the fact that I think way to much.  I am never not thinking.  It's like the hamster wheel in my brain got taken over by a hamster that's hooked up to a constant caffeine flow.  It just never stops!  Even now there are several bits of information swirling about while I'm writing this post. 

What dress am I going to wear to that dance next week?  What should (and shouldn't) I talk about when I meet up with my friends this week?  Who do I need to contact for the skit group performances I have coming up?  What storyline should I continue for my NaNoWriMo book this month? 

See what I mean?

When a quote tells me everyday to close my eyes to what's around me and open my brain to whatever thoughts come, I end up in a constant state of questioning my present, my past, my future, and, for goodness sake, my very existence.  Can anyone relate?  Can I get an "Amen"? 

No?  Just me?  Ok.

But seriously, your mind is such an amazingly powerful place!  It dictates your words, your actions, and who you are!  However, when you allow it to just wander at will, there's a large possibility you'll find yourself wrapped up in chains of worry and doubt.  When you think too much about everything around you, and try to figure out life before it's time, you'll just end up confused and afraid.  There's no way for us to predict our own futures.

So...what's the alternative?

I wondered that too.  Then, suddenly, God threw the answer right in front of me when I was in the very depths of shame and sorrow.  A song came on the radio in my car, and the main chorus said Keep your eyes open.  "Unscramble the words."  God whispered to my soul. 

Suddenly, the original quote that was on my desk for weeks seemed so backwards in applying to my life!  I needed to turn it around.  Flip it.  Change it up.  That was what freedom was supposed to feel like.  Knowing you didn't have to think or worry about anything it life, you only needed to keep your eyes open to watch God work it out for you.  "Close your mind," God said, "and keep your eyes fixed on me."

Psalm 46:10 says, "Be still and know that I am God."

That's such a powerful verse, and God used it to change my perspective that day.  By constantly thinking, I was doing everything but being still.  Another one of my favorite Bible verses challenges me every day.  It comes from Philippians 4:6-7, and it says...

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

After all that, how could we possibly allow ourselves to think so much that it distances us from God?  He wants to take care of the worry.  He wants to settle our fear for good, and give us courage.  He wants to fights our battles for us, so that we can focus on our walk with him!  He has fully offered to "guard our hearts and our minds" in order to give us peace.  I don't know about you, but I definitely want to take him up on that deal!

What's my new motto, you ask?  It's a really good one.  And it's already made a positive splash in my life...

"Keep a quiet mind, and watch God work."

Freedom feels pretty good, doesn't it?

Yeah, my thoughts exactly.

So, next time you're tempted to close your eyes and open your mind to an afternoon of endless thoughts, maybe take a moment to pause.  Ask yourself if thinking your life away is really how you want to spend your days.  How much more could you be doing to make a difference in this world if you gave up the time you spent worrying?  Yeah, I know, that question hurt me too...

But it's true.  We spend so much time in our very, very short lives trying to safeguard ourselves for tomorrow, when we should really just be trusting God with that stuff and living for today.  Moments are beautiful.  Moments speak to us.  They breathe, and flow, and blossom with a joyful kind of contentment that we could revel in if we would just open our clenched fingers and let the worry float away.  If we would let our stubborn pride fall.  If we would tear down our walls, the ones we built from the fear of being wrong, and live. 

If we would only keep a quiet mind, and watch God work.

Do you see the difference?  It's the separation between being so concerned about our own daily life that it consumes us, and letting God take care of that daily life so that we can spend that concern on someone else.  In the second scenario, we channel our worry into something productive.  We allow God to transform worry into outreach.  We concern ourselves with those who need our help, and as we assist them in conquering their worries, through prayer and support, our own worries fade as well, all because God is working through us.

But in order to get to that point, we first have to rest in our Savior.  We need to let him take that worry from weighing on our souls, and fill the empty space with peace and compassion.  And resting in this way isn't going to just be a one time thing.  Oh no.  Because we live in this world, the worry-removal process is most likely going to have to be a daily event.  A constant emptying and refilling that will determine how we handle what's thrown our way.  And it can only happen when we "be still" and allow God to show us what he wants our quiet minds to see.

What do you say?  Would you like some peace?  Quiet?  An opportunity to just breathe?

Me too.

So let's do just that.  God's already given us the ability to.  He paid for that ability on the cross.  Ready to take a jump and work towards a life free of doubt and worry? 

Let go.  Let God.  Be free.

And believe me when I say that I'm telling myself this just as much as I'm telling you.  It's so hard.  But it's simple as that.

What types of worries are the biggest struggle for you?  Maybe make a list of everything weighing on your heart right now, then journal a prayer to give it to God.  Is there one worry that stands out among the others?  Does this one thing come up a lot for you?  Give that one some extra prayer time.