How to Practically “Be Still.”
January 2024 Newsletter
Be still and know that I am God.
Psalm 46:10 NIV (emphasis added)
Thoughts to Ponder
My car battery was dead at 9:30pm, in the airport parking lot, with a tired toddler in tow.
Our toilet handle broke.
We heard possible rumors of our next military assignment, but none of it is confirmed… so we’re still waiting. We still have no idea if we’re moving this summer, or where we would be moving to, if we do move.
An opportunity to submit my book proposal vanished.
At 30+ weeks pregnant, physical discomfort is becoming more prevalent each day.
My husband is working 12+ hour days, leaving me to wrangle to our toddler, prep the nursery, and run the house all on my own.
Sleep evades me most nights, as worry, stress, and physical discomfort threaten to overwhelm me.
This is a summary of my first week of 2024. It’s not how I pictured the new year starting. It’s been days full of disappointment, tears, and frustration.
January is almost over, and while my car got a new battery and my husband fixed the toilet, the bigger life-stressors are still very much present.
Despite the chaos of daily life and the turmoil swirling in my mind, I can’t help but feel a tugging to be still.
Spoiler alert: I’m not good at being still. I like to take charge. I like to have a plan, and put that plan into action—and quickly. I like progress, I like control, and I like having my ducks in a row.
My ducks are going off in all directions, quacking in a language I don’t understand, and some of them may actually be chickens instead of ducks. That’s how out-of-control things feel right now.
But my mind keeps coming back to this verse, memorized in my heart from years ago:
Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10 (emphasis added)
To be honest, this is a hard verse for me… because it tells me to stop trying. To cease striving. To sit in this season of waiting. To slow my mind down. To chill out. To let go of the perceived control I think I have, but actually don’t.
Is it hard for you to “be still”, too? Is it hard to stop chasing, to stop trying, to patiently wait in the midst of the unknown?
From a very practical standpoint, how do I “be still” when my toddler is running around the house, when laundry needs folded, the oven is dinging, the phone is ringing, and the dog is barking outside? How do I slow my mind down when it’s racing with worry and stress?
Perhaps it’s not so much about my tasks that need done and the actions required to complete them, but it’s more about my heart and mind needing to be still—to know that He is God.
To know that God is is in control, not me. To know that God is still working in my waiting, and not just working for working’s sake, but working for my good. To know that I can trust Him, no matter the outcome.
To know God, is to spend time with Him—
To spend time reading the Bible.
To spend time in prayer.
To spend time listening to worship music.
To spend time serving others with a joyful heart.
These are “be still” activities, if you will. Heart-actions that shift our eyes from our problems to the One who already knows the answers.
A dear friend of mine wrote in her fabulous book, Win Over Worry, a very practical way to stop worry in its tracks: stop and list ten things you’re thankful for. I’ve started doing this every time a worrisome thought tries to take over, or if I feel stress creeping in.
It almost sounds too easy, too simple to work—but it does. It’s hard to have a worried heart when you have a grateful heart.
It’s hard to entertain stress when you’re too busy being still.
As this season of waiting continues, I plan to keep busy, but in a different way—in a humble, holy way. The lesson of learning how to practically “be still” is becoming abundantly clear, and I want to learn this lesson well.
If you’re also feeling called to be still, I encourage you to try the “be still” activities above, and see how it changes your heart and mind. It’s definitely changing mine, one small step at a time.
What I’m Reading
My Bible study is reading Pilgrim: 25 Ways God’s Character Leads Us Onward by Ruth Chou Simons. It’s an absolutely beautiful book, with artwork done by the author. My group is really enjoying this book so far. You can get your copy here.
What I’m Writing
For full transparency, my book proposal was rejected by a publishing house recently. I debated about sharing this because it’s painful and a bit embarrassing, but I don’t want to portray that everything always goes well, because it doesn’t. I don’t want to only share the highlight reels of this journey; I want to be truthful and authentic. To say I was disappointed was an understatement. Tears overflowed and a lot of questions were thrown at God as I processed this rejection because in my mind, everything was lining up perfectly. But as the Lord gently reminded me through subtle nudging, that’s where the problem is: in my mind, it was the perfect plan. But it clearly wasn’t His plan. His will, His plan, His way will always be better than mine (Jeremiah 29:11 and Isaiah 55:8-9 are great reminders). It’s hard and scary to trust in that, but each day the pain of rejection lessens and my trust deepens that if He wants to bring this book the fruition, He will. I just need to keep faithfully seeking Him, and taking small, patient steps forward.
Books to Start 2024
It’s no secret that I love books, so I was tickled pink that I was given a few books on my TBR (to-be-read) list for Christmas.
M is for Mama: A Rebellion Against Mediocre Motherhood by Abbie Halberstadt
Jesus Calling: Note-Taking Edition by Sarah Young
Hard is Not the Same Thing as Bad by Abbie Halberstadt
Remaining You While Raising Them by Alli Worthington
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros (I know, I know, I’m WAY behind on reading this… but I had so many other books I was reading that I never got around to this book yet. I’m excited to see what all the hype is about!)
What I’m (Not) Cooking
My mother-in-law visited us last week and I am thrilled to say that I didn’t do any of my own cooking! She had kindly taken over my kitchen and made an endless amount of freezer meals in preparation for our second baby’s arrival (when I say endless, I mean endless—our kitchen and garage freezer are FULL!). Anyone who has had a baby knows that having a freezer stocked with meals or has a meal train in the early newborn days is one of the best gifts you can receive. We are SO grateful for the time, energy, and delicious food she prepared for us!
Here are some tips for freezer meal prep:
For freezing soup, freeze in quart size bags instead of gallon bags to have smaller servings.
When making a normal dinner that is freezer-friendly, like meatloaf, a casserole, or soup, double it and immediately freeze half of it. This is a great way to slowly build up your freezer meal stash! I get overwhelmed thinking of cooking freezer meals all day, but doubling a recipe I’m already making is less intimidating.
Write clear instructions, including if any fresh ingredients need added to complete the meal. If the recipe is from a cookbook/website, write down the source/reference too, so if you have a question you know where you got the recipe from.
Use disposable, foil containers for casseroles, pasta, etc. That way you don’t use up your own tupperware and it’s already in an oven-safe container.
I prefer to place the defrosted foil container on a baking sheet in the oven when I cook it. Depending on the weight of the foil container, it can be a bit wobbly pulling it out of the oven and there’s a risk of it cooking/spilling over into the oven as well. I place all of my freezer meals on a baking sheet to prevent spillage and to make it easier to get out of the oven.
The best tip? Have a mother-in-law who blesses you with freezer meals. Blessed is an understatement!
Let’s Connect!
Thanks for reading my newsletter! Feel free to forward this email along to anyone who might enjoy it. My hope is to encourage you in your everyday faith and to share the joys and trials of life and motherhood. We’re all in this together.
—Kristin