PAUSE

I wear a pause button around my neck. A bit unconventional, I know, but that’s me. Just recently, people have started asking me about it. I purchased this necklace shortly after Jeremy went to Heaven because I was struggling with anxiety and overwhelm. The description card said it was a reminder to just breathe. Sometimes that’s the most you can do in the moment. Breathe in, breathe out. One breath at a time. But this little button means more to me than just breathing.

There is a beautiful word in the Bible that has long intrigued me. It has no English translation, so it is just transliterated : “Selah.” It is found over 70 times in the Psalms and three times in Habakkuk and is believed to be a musical notation that means “pause” or consider.

For example, Psalm 3 contains the word Selah three times.:
O LORD, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me;
Many are saying of my soul, there is no salvation for him in God. Selah
But you, O LORD, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.
I cried aloud to the LORD, and he answered me from his holy hill. Selah
I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the LORD sustained me.
I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.
Arise, O LORD! Save me, O my God! For you strike all my enemies on the cheek; you break the teeth of the wicked.
Salvation belongs to the LORD; your blessing be on your people! Selah

To say David was feeling overwhelmed here would be an understatement. He was fearing for his life, discouraged, disappointed, disillusioned and desperate. But in true psalmist fashion, he presents his problem, pauses to remind himself of the past, and then pours out a sacrifice of praise to God for His goodness and faithfulness in the past, present and future. And, in that pause, God gave David sweet rest, refreshment and renewal, and reminded him that he wasn’t alone.

That’s what this pause button means to me. In those moments of overwhelm, when I look in the mirror, I am reminded to take a sacred pause. Pause the mental anguish. Pause the inner turmoil. Pause the fear. Pause the what ifs and if onlys. Pause the chaos. But it’s not enough just to hit pause and breathe. With the pause must come the considering and the resting in the presence of Christ.

Here is an acronym I came up with to keep me in God’s presence as I pause:

Pray honestly
Allow the Spirit to speak
Utilize Scripture
Surrender to His plan
Expect God to work

Next time you feel overwhelmed by the weight of your grief and pain, try practicing the P.A.U.S.E. Like David, pour out your heart in agony to the Lord and then pause in His presence and reflect on His faithfulness. Allow Him to calm you, comfort you, direct you, and speak new life into you.

In the pause; listen. While you breathe; receive. Set aside your worry and wait for His voice. Set aside your agenda and allow Him to work out His good plan for your life. Find sacred rest in the arms of the One Who is worthy of praise.


Selah.

May 2, 2022

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