Tag: #pause

The Courage to Pause: Find Strength in Stillness

Courage is usually associated with doing big bold things. Today, I want to talk about the Courage to PAUSE – to stop where we are or what we are doing – and to reflect.

Why is it good to sometimes pause?

  1. Pause to Reflect on God’s Purpose
    In our bid to pursue our dream, we sometimes lose our way. It is always good to pause along the way, to realign with God’s purpose and to review our progress to see if we are still on the right path. It is easy to detour or get distracted or get sidetracked from God’s purpose. Hitting pause gives us a chance to review and realign our plans with God’s purpose. It is in the stillness that you can hear the soft whisper of God’s voice.
    “Be still, and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10)
  2. The Strength to Wait in Faith
    Sometimes we become impatient with our progress and feel we can’t afford to wait, especially when we are waiting on God’s timing. Waiting on God is His way of strengthening our faith – as we trust Him in the waiting. Rest assured, He is working behind the scene to prepare us. Just like brewing soup takes time to extract its flavours, growing in maturity takes time and patience.
    “Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” (Psalm 27:14)
  3. Rest as a Source of Courage
    God sometimes call us to rest, but we are reluctant to do so. We feel guilty when we rest, so we continue to push ourselves. However, rest is necessary to restore our strength and creativity. Rest gives us a way to step back so that we can see that we are moving in the right direction. Rest gives us a moment to review our journey and see the progress we have made. Rest gives us the courage to reflect and make bold decisions intentionally.
    “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)

This is my invitation to you today: have the courage to pause and find the strength in your stillness.

Paused – to catch the word of the Year

Yes, I have PAUSED in my blog – again. I am not quitting, but putting it on “pause” for a few months. During these few months, the Word of the Year was revealed to me: CONSISTENCY. The irony is that – I have consistently been procrastinating, instead of taking action towards my goal of writing consistently. Perhaps, like the water in the kettle, it takes time for it to boil. I consoled myself as I pondered during this season of “pause”.
I believe the concept of Consistency is tied to forming a habit, e.g. forming the habit of writing consistently or the habit of exercising regularly. Doing things consistently is one of the keys to success. Part of that doing things consistently – is not quitting, and to show up, again and again, especially after we’re down and don’t feel like getting back up.
Last year, my Word of the Year was Integrity. It helped me focus on doing what I said I would do. The greatest thing I achieved last year was to publish my Blessed Journal on Nehemiah. This was one thing I had said I wanted to do for a few years, and it finally came to fruition when I published the journal in 52 days last November in 2022. All because I had focused on one word for that year – Integrity.
It is my fervent prayer – that I would achieve my Word of the Year – CONSISTENCY – in 2023, with the help of the Holy Spirit. That I would write to share my thoughts, insights and what I have learned – and to be faithful in what God had called me to do.

I would like to suggest that you decide on your Word of the Year too. Just one word to focus on for this year. Something that resonates with you, and to challenge you! If you are bold enough – share it out!!!