Our world is noisy.

I get to a point where I have to withdraw to the wilderness and disappear.

I don’t want to hear another word.  I don’t want another distraction.

I want peace and I want stillness.

These words from Maria Shriver resonate strongly with me:

Some weeks nothing comes to mind, no matter how hard I struggle to find the words. Other weeks, my writing just flows and flows. But even then, sometimes the wrong words flow out. Or sometimes the world changes on a dime and so does my message. When that happens, that’s when you have to take a moment to get quiet. I mean really quiet. You have to get below the noise, which is not easy. You have to try and go below your own surface. This was one of those weeks for me. – Maria Shriver

As a writer when my words stop flowing, many times it’s because my brain is clogged and/or I’m so distracted, I cannot form a coherent thought.

When this happened recently,  I was overwhelmed and agitated. I threw up my hands, withdrew to the wilderness, and shut out the noise.

I had no more energy to give anything past the necessities in my life

I realized that I had been spending energy on what amounted to distractions. As a result my brain was clogged and I was drained.

In the gospels, it is said that Jesus withdrew to lonely places after dealing with the crowds.  That says a lot right there: Even Jesus had to get away from people!!

Withdrawing to the Wilderness before the Next chapter

The wilderness isn’t always a negative space. Many people go to the wilderness for introspection, solace, revelation, and rejuvenation.

In many traditions, the wilderness is where the metamorphosis happens.

There are times when we’re called to the wilderness to be refined, tested, and gain clarity before we begin the next chapter of our lives.

In the Gospels, we see that Jesus withdraws to the wilderness and there is tempted by the Devil.  After the temptation is over, Jesus begins the next chapter of his life which is his teaching to the public.

In my own journey, there have been times where I have withdrawn to the wilderness and got quiet have been before transitioning into the next chapter that I have been preparing for.

It is in those moments of transition that distractions, noise, and temptations present themselves.

I believe it is a test to get to the next level: Do I really want to level up?

Am I ready to stop talking and actually go for it?

Will I collapse and fumble the ball on the 1-yard line because I’ve allowed myself to become distracted?

Am I going to discount my gut and listen to the opinion of others?

Silencing the Noise…All the Noise

When I think about our noisy society, of course, I think about social media which has too much information about everything.  As Pastor Mark Batterson of National Community Church in Washington D.C. says,

“We were not built to know everything at all moments of the day.”

We simply don’t have all the bandwidth to deal with all of the chaos that is going on around us.

No More Inch Deep “Experts”

When I first became self-employed, I wasted a ton of money listening to “Experts” on how to build a business.  I found a lot of the information contradictory and confusing.  Several years into being self-employed, I realize their business was selling people expensive courses about how to build a business. You charge people a lot of money for courses on how to build a business.

Now we have “experts” from wealth-building to relationships who have no practical experience or success in what they’re supposed to be an expert in.

I heard the term “inch deep” experts and it still makes me giggle.  To become an expert at anything takes many years and a track record of results. Now, all it takes is a social media account full of pretty pictures, a podcast, and a self-published book.

When you make the decision to get quiet, “Inch Deep” experts are the first thing to remove from your life.

I have gotten the best advice from people who have actually achieved and accomplished what I’m looking to do and it’s all been for free.

Do you know what else is funny? It’s often the complete opposite of the advice the “Inch Deep Experts” are providing?

It’s in the Still Small Voice…

I’ve had moments where I disable the group chats, go off social media, and only take personal calls from my Board of Directors. I simply do not have the bandwidth to deal with much more.

These days we have too much access to one another and it’s often draining and distracting.  I understand when I don’t hear back from people because I realize that they may be in their own personal wilderness and on retreat.

If you’re reading this post-2020, then we had to deal with the upheaval of our lives along with societal chaos.  We’re all lucky we’re still functioning!!

There’s a story in the Old Testament where the prophet goes to the wilderness for solace and to receive revelation from God.

During his time in the wilderness, there’s an earthquake, wind, fire, and a lot of noise….but the revelation from God wasn’t in any of those loud noises.

The revelation was in the still small voice

We don’t receive our greatest revelations in the loudest noises around us but in the still small voice that we’re only able to hear once we get quiet.

If you need answers, then get quiet.

Make No Apologies…

Pandemic, Economic hardship, civil unrest, violence against certain ethnic groups.

There is SO MUCH happening in our world.

Constant chaos is draining and exhausting.  If you need a time out, then by all means take it. Get quiet, reach out to trusted sources, seek professional help, and do whatever you need to do to keep yourself mentally and emotionally healthy at this time.

Allow yourself space and time to get quiet…

With all of the instant connectivity of technology, people think they should have access us at all times.  We must set boundaries and not take it personally if we don’t hear from people right away.  Check in on people but don’t take it personally if they don’t answer back right away.

I saw a great post on Twitter: “I’m not ignoring you. I’m overwhelmed.”  It can take time for people to recover from the overwhelm and so allow them that space.

I have a policy of not taking certain phone calls after 7 p.m., there are weekends when I go off the grid and just spend time alone.

Do what you need to do in order to maintain your peace and manage anxiety during this time!