The Art of Stillness: How Quiet Moments With God Transform Your Day

“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me” (John 15:4, NIV).

In the last 24 hours, I’ve said, “Hold still,” to a family member at least three times. One to pause two boys and torture them with a mandatory first-day-of-school picture. One to free a tucked-under shirt collar. And one to etch into my memory the face of my college boy, whom I won’t see for a few weeks.

When someone asks us to hold still, we generally do. We slow down and wait for direction. For a second, all activity stops. That’s fine and easy to make requests like shirt collars. But when I’m pausing to meet my son’s eyes after a busy day, I want more than a wardrobe adjustment.

This is what I think of when I read John 15, about the vinedresser and the vine and the instruction to remain. This invitation to hold still, or “remain,” is meno in Greek, which means to tarry, abide, continue to be present.

So when Jesus asks us to “hold still,” it isn’t so He can wipe off mustard from lunch. He’s asking to see us, to tarry with Him.

And it’s for a good thing. We know that in stillness, we know God more clearly (Psalm 46:10) and in quietness and confidence, we find our strength (Isaiah 30:15). That means, then, it is in the stillness where we discover more of God. But the choice to still ourselves and invite God into “hold still” moments is an art.

How can we discover the rhythms that help us to remain with God? Finding quiet moments with God that transform our days begins with knowing what’s keeping us from Him.

Know What’s Keeping You From Stillness

What makes practicing the art of stillness difficult? If you’re like me, your answers would be some rotating combination of what’s going on around you and inside you. So let’s take a look at both:

Notice What’s Going on Around You

Noting the noise around us is the first step in finding creative ways to be still. It’s worth saying that the places and people we love most are wonderful, and we love them! – might also be our greatest distractions. Stepping away might be a challenge, especially if you’re in a season of caring for tiny (or grown-up) people. Sometimes finding stillness might look like stilling your soul while you put a movie on in the car for your carseat passengers. Or it might look like putting on walking shoes and moving your body because that’s how your soul can breathe more freely.

Questions to ask:

1. What part of your day has the most capacity to set aside moments to hold still with God? Hint: It doesn’t have to be the first thing.

2. How can you get creative with ways to set aside 15 or 30 minutes to spend with Him? Nap time, lunch breaks, or evening walks down the street are great windows.

3. What “noise” will need to be quieted during the time you chose? Devise a strategy to create stillness. Put your phone away, step away from your desk, close your laptop, leave the mess in your kitchen, etc.

Examine What’s Happening Inside

Sometimes, the spiraling inside keeps us from meeting with God. When we’re stirred up or frantically fitting everything in, we have a hard time settling our bodies and our souls. But when we hold space and invite God to minister deep—when we tarry and abide and remain—He settles our souls.

It’s ironic, isn’t it? We crave peace. He offers peace. He is peace. But we can’t find it because it feels hard to be still and receive it. In those times, we can try some helpful ways to enter into stillness more easily.

Questions to ask:

1. Do you connect with God more easily when you’re moving your body? Does moving your feet help you quiet your mind? Take a walk with God.

2. Are you easily distracted by what needs to be done in your surroundings? Create a clutter-free corner just for sitting with Him. Know that when you enter that space, all of the other noises will wait at the door.

3. Does complete quiet make you crazy? Turn on a white noise app on your phone. Then set your phone six feet away from you while you spend time with God.

4. Is there a spiritual discipline you’d like to try or revisit to connect with God? Scripture reading, scripture meditation, or lectio divina? Journaling, prayer, or listening prayer? Worship? Each of these spiritual disciplines has the practice of stillness at its core.

Allow Stillness to Transform Your Days

Once we hold space for stillness in our days, we begin to discover we want more space for those quiet moments with God. Waiting inside the choice to practice the art of stillness comes the sacred experience of a life-giving connection with God. We tap into the vine in new ways.

This is when remaining in Him turns from a “should” to a desire.

When I miss time with God, I feel the distance—the “fruit” in my life withers. The fruits of love, peace, joy, and kindness only travel through stems that are connected to Him. Without abiding, my thoughts turn brown, and my heart shrivels.

Because God meets us in the quiet moments to transform our days and our hearts.

Friend, God’s invitation to us to hold still is for far more than fixing shirt collars. Tarrying with Him rewires our minds. Remaining in Him refreshes our tired souls. Being in His presence changes us. When we practice the art of stillness with the Vinedresser, we find the sacred connection that brings life.