Resting to get more done seems crazy, doesn’t it? I didn’t fully realize that was what had happened until two days ago. So here’s the backstory…

At the end of January, I went to an amazing three-day event where I got some valuable clarity on what I needed to be focused on in this season. I walked away from there knowing what I was called to do, but also knowing I had to be all-in with my complete focus on it if it was to get done. That required letting go of some other commitments that took my time in order to focus on what I now knew to do.

Releasing some of those other things was hard. I love so many things! But I knew it was a must if I was to ever finish my assignment, which was to write the book ( LOUD Is Not A Language®) I had been striving to write since 2016.

Stepping into a place of rest

Around that same time, a friend from out of state sent me a book entitled The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry. I read it and it resonated in me so deeply that we started a book study on it with some friends at our home. The premise is that we stay so busy, either with tasks to be done, mental activity/preoccupation, or both, that we don’t ever get into a place of rest where we can hear and be aware of our own thoughts. Much less what God might be saying to us.

So I got intentional. I stepped into that place of rest, waking earlier than usual to have a very focused time of quiet. I know, it sounds paradoxical that waking earlier could help you get in a place of rest. But focused quiet time to set your body, soul, and spirit in a rhythm of peace is a game changer.

My days shifted. I began starting from a place of rest instead of working to try to get to a place of rest. This brought a lot of clarity and direction, which increased what I got done. But without striving.

Eliminating distractions and preoccupations

The bottom line of this year’s journey is that I completed in 3 months what I hadn’t been able to complete in 7 years. Yep! It’s true! I have tried to write the book Loud Is Not A Language since 2016, and it wasn’t until I got quiet, allowed myself to rest and focus and let go of anything else distracting, that I was able to write it. In 3 months! Without striving!

I see the distractions around us as being LOUD. They feel urgent. Like we have to attend to them right when they pop up. But they are most often what keep us from getting the more important things done.

Loud is not a language. It distracts us. It takes our focus away from what’s really important. It takes the joy out of what we do and with whom we do it.

Today, I hope you will take some time to examine areas in your life where distractions and preoccupations are LOUD. When we see them, we can then refuse them instead of being on autopilot and responding without thinking.

Take your time back. It is the one resource we can never get back once it is gone. And it is too precious to let distractions steal it. Invest your time in what matters most. Relationships and purpose.

Brenda Harkins is a believer in impossible possibilities. In brokenness becoming beautiful. In justice and mercy and honor and power – with love perfecting them all. As a Speaker, Author, Mediator, and Professional Coach, Brenda is highly focused on the power of communication. Her confidence, clarity, and courage to transform challenges into victories were the catalyst for creating Loud Is Not A Language®, a communication model that is actually a challenge to transform you. Become more you. Building strong, resilient, respectful relationships at the same time.