A Penny for Your Thoughts

If I had a penny for every thought I had today, I'd be rich!! I recently read that the human brain has an average of 70,000 thoughts in one day. Since there are 86,400 seconds in a 24-hour period, I tend to think I'm at the higher end of the range. In fact, I think I pretty much meet that quota in just a few minutes. At any given moment, I could be excited about my new furniture, anxious about a deadline, frustrated with a plan that went awry, curious about a friend's Facebook comment, nervous about a confrontation, heartbroken for a friend who has turned from the Lord, giddy that I'll have a new nephew in a month and another niece or nephew in two months, sad for a friend who's grieving loss, and wondering what I have to eat in my fridge. And those thoughts lead to the next few moments of planning how I'll arrange my furniture, wishing my deadline would go away, agonizing over how I should have done something differently, forming my response to a Facebook comment, practicing in my head what I'll say in a confrontational situation, praying for a friend, planning what I'll pack to see my family for the holidays, wondering if I'll ever have cousins to take to play with my niece and nephews, making a mental note to write a card and wondering if I have all the ingredients for a new recipe I saw on Pinterest. Whew...it's exhausting!
Thank goodness for Psalm 46:10 which says, "Be still, and know that I am God..." The HCSB version reads, "Stop your fighting-and know that I am God..." In the midst of the chaos in my head, He is God. There are many thoughts fighting for priority in my mind. God just wants me to be still and know that He is God!
So how do I do this? Well, I don't have a magic answer or a formula for being still, but as I turn off the TV, log off of Facebook, sit in the quietness of the room and place my thoughts on my God, my scattered thoughts are pulling together, my burden is lifting, my headache is subsiding, and my tired body is giving up the fight.

~Rebecca Phillips