“The tipping point . . . the point where there is so much noise, so loud, for so long, that you don’t hear anything at all. The cacophony of sounds blends together and none of it means anything. . . . You can’t hear your own thoughts — let alone God. There are just too many words. If you want to hear the Holy Spirit . . . then you’re going to have to quiet things down a bit.”- Alli Patterson
In Chapter 5 (“Quiet Down”) of How to Stay Standing, Alli Patterson talks about the loudest thing she’s ever experienced. The deafening sound of 105,000 screaming fans at Ohio State’s stadium – aka ‘the Horsehoe’. Yet, even in the midst of all that noise, Alli fell asleep on her husband’s shoulder.
Most significantly, Alli states, you too have a tipping point. And to follow Jesus, it’s critical that you stay away from it. Because the words of God only occupy the space you allot them in the deafening noise of your days. Therefore, Alli exhorts, build a strong foundation through regular, authentic exchanges between you and the Father. Through the Holy Spirit. Lower the volume enough to hear him.
Consequently, Alli offers three ways to introduce quiet into your life. She covers the first way today.
1. Leave the Stadium. First, with intention, back away from your tipping point of words. Find pockets of lower volume and silence. You need a quiet enough environment in which to learn and practice prioritizing and sorting sounds. Otherwise, Alli quips, we might simply fixate on air blowing through a vent.
Similarly, our east need to cultivate this auditory attention. To cut through the background noise and focus on the words of God.
In conclusion, Alli counsels:
“You have learned to operate on overload, so it may be uncomfortable to back off. It might even feel like something is wrong, like you’re not doing enough. But when your physical ears (and eyes) get a break from words, your spiritual ears start to work better. It gives margin for the voice of God in your day.”
Today’s question: What do you see as your tipping point? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Constant humming – hum of shoulds”