I love a good walk. There is something so wonderful about moving through the world on foot. The slowness allows me to slow down amidst the fullness of my life. I always feel behind. I cannot remember the last time I made one of my self-imposed deadlines. This places a background noise of stress and anxiety on top of my days. It also makes every accomplishment feel like the conclusion of a failure.
Yet, when I walk – when I slow – I see the world move past me. Sometimes it’s the blur of a bike or a bus, or the very distant rumble of a plane flying far overhead. The monastic life invites me to move more slowly. It isn’t a slowness for its own sake. Instead, we slow down to see ourselves, our neighbors, our prayers, our work, and our God more clearly. There is no off switch for the background noise in our lives. Yet, going for a walk slows me down and helps me hear what is important. It is a way that I create silence and invite it to be a part of my life.
I love a good walk. I’m blessed to be able to walk. Sometimes I get to walk along dusty crushed gravel paths, and it feels a bit like I’m walking with Jesus all those years ago. Every step I take is an invitation to keep following Jesus.
But the voice of God is most often a whisper dancing within the stillness of the breeze. Without knowing myself and creating silence in my life, it is easy for me to not notice what I haven’t heard.
Lord, I pray that I won’t again lead a life where You need to raise Your voice for me to hear You. Amen.