Living from Quiet By Nancy Reece

Living from Quiet with Undivided Hearts

I often go to a nearby retreat center to experience quite, solitude and stillness.  One of my early mentors taught me that there are things God does in the heart of a leader that only get done in quiet.  A few years ago, I went to Penuel with my friend, Sandra.  I wrote this in my journal just after I arrived.

O Lord, I am back where your spring flowers called to my soul. Now the gentle sunshine in a crisp fall afternoon falls on my face, bringing warmth and light. While I’m here please:

Pour into me

Soak into my heart

Seep into my being

Penetrate my soul

Drown my fears

Illuminate my dark places

Mark my path

Notice the phrase “drown my fears”?  I was very deliberately choosing quiet time in order to deal with something I’d heard the Lord tell me 22 days earlier that had brought fear. I had written these words in my journal:

Nancy, are you prepared to give up the YMCA, abandon hope of a successful career, a steady job, and reasonable comfort, to give yourself to My people and to My work for the rest of your life?

I was really struggling with this question. I was looking for confirmation, wisdom, and insight. After a day of quiet, a cold, crisp evening fell. Sandra and I lit a fire in the wood stove and just talked – no distractions, just good, deep conversation. I shared with her the question I had written in my journal. She paused and then said,

“That doesn’t sound like God. The words ‘abandon hope’ aren’t in His language.”

It was as if a pair of blinders had been ripped off my eyes as I saw the truth in her words. The fear I had been wrestling with for almost a month melted away as the Holy Spirit spoke to me through a dear courageous friend. I rephrased the question:

Nancy, are you willing to give yourself to My people and to My work for the rest of your life?

It was easy to answer yes – and to trust in Jesus.

By withdrawing, choosing quiet and seeking godly counsel, I learned to be attuned to how God speaks to us in love. I also learned that Satan tries to derail our messages from God, often with a subtle change of words.

What does God want to do in your heart that can only be done in quiet?

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Nancy Reece equips and encourages leaders in the ways of God. Nancy teaches as adjunct faculty at Lipscomb University’s Graduate College of Business. She has a thirty-year background in Christian non-profit and faith-based corporate leadership, and has served on numerous ministry boards. She is the author of two books and her latest is Undivided Hearts: Tender Wisdom for Tough Choices, a study for women leaders.

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