So Much Noise!

My husband and I went to a good old county demolition derby a couple of weekends ago. (I like to think that I’m a well-rounded person since I very much enjoy being pampered, going to boutiques, experiencing luxury of any kind, but I also enjoy camping, hiking, second-hand shopping and odd things like demolition derbies.) I actually grew up going to demo derbies. There’s nothing like the exuberance of the crowd when a seemingly disabled and crumpled old car suddenly roars back to life and trundles over to offer a few more taps to the other vehicles that remain. My parents took us to tractor pulls, too, but I must say, I never quite understood the fascination. Anyway, back to the event at hand. We had five of our grandchildren with us for that evening and they absolutely loved their first demo derby. It can get pretty loud at demo derbies, so they each had something to put in or over their ears. I was just covering my ears as needed and found it humorous that I mostly needed it because of the grandkids’ cheering and not because of the cars. Without any prompting, they organically began chanting in unison the number of the car they were rooting for. And as soon as that car would be dead and gone, they would just choose another number. I was sitting right in front of them. It was loud.

Have you ever been in really loud environments like that? Maybe even just a noisy restaurant? The most difficult thing is trying to carry on a conversation with the person next to you, but yet somehow you can. Somehow we can focus on the voice of the person we are trying to hear and let the noise around us fade away. There’s a lot of noise going on around us in the world today–really unpleasant noise I might add. If we focus too much on the noise it will bring only stress and a feeling of being overwhelmed and even fearful. We need to focus on a single voice right now.

I’m reminded of this little wall hanging I have above our piano. (Yes, we still have a real piano and I’m not giving mine away.) I just want to remind us, friends, that if we follow the voice of God through His Spirit, we will be able to overcome the voices that would beckon us away. As believers, we must stay focused on the only voice that really matters and follow that voice passionately. As that little wall hanging says, “Make time for the quiet moments as God whispers and the world is loud.” How to hear that voice? It sounds simple, but daily Bible reading and prayer and a deliberate heeding of the Holy Spirit’s leading is the way. It takes practice and intentionality. And this requires some time and effort on our part. It might mean reducing our time on social media and replacing it with the wholesome truth and wisdom of God’s Word. It will likely require some occasional quiet solitude. But it’s so worth it when we can hear the voice of the Lord deep in our souls reassuring us of His sovereignty and lovingkindness despite how circumstances may appear at any given moment.

I was able to talk with people near me during that noisy demolition derby when I wanted to, but I mostly just enjoyed myself. Not so much because of the action on the track, but because of the laughter and squeals and shouts from those five little sweethearts who were with us. Those were the voices I chose to listen to that evening. In the midst of the noise, friends, let’s guard our hearts, minds and souls with a conscious effort to focus on the quiet voice that leads us to right thinking. “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8)