Peace and Quiet Within, Amid Chaotic Life

When all is noisy about,

Yet all is quiet within,

Any thought for doubt,

Doesn’t even begin.

Peering out the window,

Rain pouring down,

Oh, what a show!

No sign of a frown.

When we’re at peace to see,

Thunder and lightning about,

Inside and safe is glee,

Gatherings of praise to shout.

***

How wonderful it is to be inside during a thunderstorm, as we peer through our windows at the awesome display that God’s creative processes can unleash.

It is as if there is even more peace available during dangerous times when we feel especially safe. Positioned to safely observe, where no one else is at threat, because if they were we would not feel safe, we are able to delight at the wonder unfolding before our eyes.

And the power of such images flood back into our minds, and well-up pleasantly warm feelings in the heart, of times past when we were blessed with such safety.

When we feel peace and quiet within, time tends to stop. When we feel so safe the ever-threatening world seems more irrelevant than ever. When we feel so safe, rare as it might occur, we may have the gift of God—to replay the image again whenever we feel unsafe.

Coiling up in front of the fire or resting on the bench watching the sun set over the ocean, or anywhere where life unfolds before us in beauty, we have this gift.

The gift of feeling peace and quiet within is no ordinary gift—it is God’s sure and comforting Presence in the world that we too often find scary.

The value of such a memory packs double power. We recall it by memory and we attain a memory for it. In the latter situation, what we are saying is we tend to unconsciously seek the space to create more and more peace and quiet within. And that is very good. The more we desire peace, the more effort we put in to achieve peace, the more we are bound to experience peace.

When we experience peace and quiet within we are sold.

Never is there a better experience for a human being than peace and quiet within.

Once it has been enjoyed, this sense of holy Shalom in the world, we are converted. When we are so convinced that goodness-of-soul is possible we want more and more of it. Sometimes the trick is impatience for the troubling times we have to deal with. We cannot have peace and quiet within at all times, which is frustrating.

But we can plan to have times of peace and quiet within. Having experienced such times all we can do is manufacture the circumstances and let God do the rest.

© 2014 S. J. Wickham.