In The Stillness

The loudest battles aren’t always outside of us. Sometimes it’s the constant noise, the buzzing phone, the running mind, and the endless demands that pull our attention away from God even while we’re trying to pray. We talk about what it means to dwell in the secret place and why stillness is not a vibe, it’s a decision that takes obedience. 

I share what led me to step away for a season of rest and how God met me consistently when I finally slowed down. We get practical about protecting time with Him: silencing notifications, setting boundaries with people you love, and choosing a simple space that becomes your prayer closet. If you’ve been asking God for clarity, direction, and peace, this is a reminder that He often speaks when we stop fighting for control and start surrendering our will. 

We also dig into Scripture as the anchor for discernment because God will never tell us something that contradicts His written Word. I talk about journaling, reading the physical Bible, and how re-reading 1 Samuel brought fresh insight that I didn’t see the first time. We close with encouragement for anyone who feels too busy to rest: the hours are not lost when God is the One redeeming the time. If this encouraged you, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs quiet, and leave a review telling me what distraction you’re ready to lay down.

Transcript

Psalm 91 And The Secret Place

Six Weeks Of Rest And Obedience

Silencing Notifications To Focus

Journaling And Daily Encounters With God

Scripture Anchors And Fresh Revelation

Called To Speak And Next Week Preview

Closing Prayer And Blessing

SPEAKER_00 0:09

Hi my friends, welcome back to All Position for Purpose Conversations. If you have been listening to us for a while to since the last episode was on December 22nd, I took a much needed time off just for rest and a time away that the Lord called me to a period of just silence and submission and surrender to Him. So today I will be sharing, and over the next few weeks, I will be sharing some things with you that the Lord has laid on my heart that I believe will be a benefit to you, will be a blessing to you, and will also help you in your own journey as you seek solitude, as you seek silence, as you seek to hear from God what He wants of you in this season, what the directions and the clarity that you are desiring for Him. So relax, and I pray that this episode will truly be a blessing to you. Alright, blessings. The Psalm 91, verse 1 states that he that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Today's episode is titled In the Stillness. In the stillness, a lot of noises taking place all around us. A lot of things are happening that draws our attention away from God, even from our very own thoughts. There's so many noises coming left, right, center, all around us. And they're what I call not just noise, but these noises are distracting. It takes away the focus of what we should be thinking on, what we should be focused on. And even when you get into the presence of God, these distracting thoughts will also come. And when these thoughts come, what do they do? Sometimes they interrupt the flow of our prayer or conversation with Almighty God. From December to early January, I felt the Lord calling me back to a period of rest. Had the date in my mind as well, and I was looking forward to it. As our church finished our period of prayer and fasting, the the next day was the day that the Lord said was the day I felt impressed on my spirit to start. Can I tell you something? It's as if this time was ordained by Almighty God, just looking back over the past six weeks to see how on the very first day that the Spirit of the Lord just met me right there in the secret place. In the secret places where he met me, is as if he was just sitting and waiting and say, How long, my daughter? How long will you continue to allow the noise and the distraction to keep you away from my presence? How long? And I feel like God just smiled when I just uh when I just became obedient and said, Yes, Lord, I will take this time away. Can I tell you? I didn't know what the time away would have looked like. I didn't know, but I was curious to find out and and because I also needed clarity on some other things as well, I said, There can be there can be nothing lost. Nothing lost to give myself away and to give God this timing as well. And I remember on this first day, just this level of excitement. Can I tell you? There are some things that you will have to do when you make this decision to take this this journey with God. It could be a weekend, it could be a day. I chose six weeks because I believe that's what the Lord wanted, required of me, and just looking back, you know, that's that statement is true, that's what he wanted. So you need to also find out from him what time, because sometimes we want the time to be our own time because it is convenient for me. I still had to go to work, I still had to show up for work, but I dedicated the mornings to God and then evenings, and of course, you know when I get an opportunity during the day, I'm I'm sending up a prayer to him. But it was that sitting down and and and focused time was in the mornings and in the and in the nights. And I remembered just putting my phone all the silencing all the notifications, silencing them because the distractions of the phone ringing and the text messages coming in and the different requests, the different conversations, I knew that I would have had to silence them, and I still have not, I still have not turned my notifications on one week later. Let's just say it's taken me a time to get back into the rhythm, but I'm thankful for what God is doing. And so let me read track. I put all the notifications and signs, so I didn't have to hear anything, I had to choose to go to look at something, and I told my team, I told my friends, this is what I'm going to do, you know, for them to honor and respect this time that I wanted to set at set aside for God. Because when we make sacrifices for God, everyone around us benefits from it, or friends or family, or colleagues, or church, they benefit from this period of solitudes. If you want to choose a time to sacrifice and give back to God, he's no man's debtor, right? He says obedience is better than sacrifice, and so the obedience would be to say yes to him, right? Rather than his telling you to come away with him and your sacrificing, giving praise and thanksgiving when the biggest thing that he wanted was obedience. So the obedience and the sacrifice of your time and your worship, God will reward. So as I went through that period, I remember the first day just writing in my journal about what was happening and what my expectations were of Almighty God. And and can I tell you, my friends, the spirit of the living God met me every single day. He poured into me, he poured into me. And and and listen, if you know me, this is no boasting, this is no, this is no being super spiritual and overly righteous. My encouragement to you is that what I got from it, I want you to get it too, especially in the time that we're living in when so much is happening around us. You need to know what God is saying to you, you need to know the instructions, you need to know the directions, you need clarity on some things, and taking time away is what is going to give you all that you need you're looking for, and extras, can I tell you? Remember that even the Lord took time away to pray to his heavenly father. I remember just one of the times, just sitting, and you know, they're always saying, Where is your prayer closet? And I was saying, Lord, I don't have a prayer closet. Because listen, I started to look in my closets and say, Lord, you know, I don't even know where I would put some of these things to make space. And the Holy Spirit says, right at your bedside, why not make there your time to meet with me? And I already had a mat there. All I had to do was to just go down on my knee, and that became my prayer closet. Because my prayer closet is normally on my bed, that's where I spend my most time praying. But I felt this required a level of submission, which means some me going down on my knees, and as I heard the spirit of the Lord just speaking to me, and what he said to me lines up with the word that he was giving me. Oh my god, that you are so awesome! Lines up with his word. So God is never ever gonna tell us something that does not line up with the word that with his written word for us, his logos. He's not gonna tell us anything outside of it. One of the biggest lessons that I have learned during this time is so is to surrender my will to Almighty God, is to surrender my life, my all to him, and as I understand to submit to his lordship, that means whatever it is that he requires of me, wherever he wants me to go, but to be willing and to be obedient, to say yes, Lord. Because if the Lord who created the heavens and earth has an assignment for me to do, like I know this podcast is an assignment, I have to show up to be able to do it, right? And I was so excited about this morning because I'm saying, Lord, you have given me something to share, and I wanted to share to my sisters and the males who I know also listen that take time away, take time out of your schedule to give back to your heavenly father. Is it 10 minutes? Is it 15 minutes? Is it 20 minutes? Is it 30 minutes? Is it an hour that he's requiring of you to just sit in his presence where you can hear his voice? Will you be obedient? And I remember, even as I'm saying that, someone said to me, Make sure you get your journal for all the downloads that he will give you. And I am telling you, get your journal, get your pen, have your physical Bible ready. Hey my god, there was something about reading the physical Bible that I'm telling you. I am picking it up and I'm reading it. I read the Bible on my phone, especially because I want to do the other versions. But my Bible is a new King James version, and so I read it, and like, didn't know if you ever read some of the books of the Bible before, and you're reading it again, and you're getting just such fresh insights, such fresh revelations. That is what will happen. The Holy Spirit just opens the word and it just fills your heart and you get different understanding because in this season, God knows where you are and He wants to speak with you. I remember saying, Lord, I want a book to read, I want a book to read, and so for the portion, I felt him leading me to read first Samuel, and I read the first book of Samuels, and I made my notes in my journal of the things that the Lord was showing me in the scripture. When I completed all those chapters, I heard the Spirit of the Lord says, read the book over again. Can I tell you? When I started re-reading the book, the fresh insights and the revelations that came, I was asking myself, didn't I just read this chapter? How didn't I see this? But this is how God works. This is how God works. That's why our approach to his word can't be because you've read it before you think you know everything, because each day he gives us fresh insight into his word. His word is living and it's active and it's sharper than any two edges. So that's the word of Almighty God. So every time we read it, it's like reading fresh manner, it's like eating fresh manner. God gives new revelations, new insights. And I remember just asking him as I knew I was going to be ready to do the podcast when all when the when the time of solitude was over, and he says, share what I learned from 1 Samuel. So over the coming weeks, I will be sharing what I have learned on 1 Samuel with you in the hopes that it will encourage you to spend time in God's presence, to read his words, and to tell others about what God has been doing to you, doing for you, how he has been showing up for you. One of the things that God reminded me of as well is what he has called me to do. And my scripture was from Isaiah 61, verse 1 to 2. That was a reminder, and God kept showing me different scriptures that aligned with that, that the Spirit of the Lord is upon me because He has anointed me. I won't even get into it, you can read it, and I'm reminded by that and who he wants me to speak with. My sisters, my friends, listen, God has good plans for us. God has good plans for you. But if you don't take time away from the busyness of your own life, from the distractions that the enemy will force upon you, you will not hear him. You'll not hear his still small voice whispering to you. You'll not hear him calling you to come up higher. You're not hearing calling you for the instructions for the tasks that he has called you to do. So in the secret place, God reveals himself. In the secret place, God restores, God renews, God equips, God anoints, God reveals himself to you. In the secret place is where God is calling you today, to spend time in his presence, to refresh yourself in him. He leadeth me beside still waters, he restores my soul. That's what the Spirit of the Lord wants to do for you today, to refresh you, to restore your soul, to remind you that you are a value to him. You're a value to him, you're more precious to him because we were created in his image and his likeness. I pray that today will be a day that you surrender everything to Almighty God. That you will say, Yes, Lord, I will come away with you. Help me each day, Lord God, offer this day to surrender my will to you, my time to you. Because at the end of the day, you are the God who restores and you will redeem the time for me, Almighty God. My hours will not be lost because what I will gain from you is so much more than what I think I have lost. And watch God work, watch Him show up on your behalf, because it is in the secret place that God downloads what He wants of you to do, but you have to be willing to be still and to listen. Be still and willing to listen. So next week I will be sharing with you what I learned in the whisper. What I learned in the whisper. Now, Spirit of the Living God, I thank you this morning, Lord God, for every person who will listen to this podcast. I place them before you, Almighty God. You have called them away to a time of rest, Lord God. But there are a lot of things that are happening in their family, Lord God, in their work, in their church, in their community, all around them, Lord, that is distracting them, Lord. They feel as if they're not able to give you this time because they say, But I have to work, and how will this time go? Lord, they're the same God who did it for me. And I felt as if I spent every waking moment in your presence. Create and curate, Almighty God, this special time for them. Minister, Lord God, I pray in the name of Jesus and let your anointing just rest upon them. That space that they have identified, Lord God, to run into each day, Lord God. Let your presence hover there, Lord God. Meet them at the point of their need, Almighty God. I speak blessings over them today, Lord God. And may the Spirit of the Living God, may you just hover over them this morning. Whisper to them, Lord God, how much you love them and how much, Lord, you're looking forward to meet them right there. I give you praise, I give you glory, and I give you honor in your matchless and mighty name. I pray with thanksgiving. Amen and amen. See you next time on another proposition for purpose conversations with Colette Marie. Bye bye.