Chris and I have been getting up early, lately, to have a morning before Mac wakes up at 7. We read the bible and drink coffee. Chris goes to the gym while I free write. It’s slow but intentional. The first few times our alarm went off, it felt painful, but as the days have continued, it has begun to feel like an investment in myself.

This week, I’ve felt frustrated as I have tried to write each morning. The words aren’t coming. I feel a little lost when it comes to picking a subject. I am all bottled up. Lots of ideas, nowhere to take them. Lots of beginnings, no real output.

I couldn’t figure out what was keeping the words from coming together. I’m reflecting, making time for stillness, reading at night. All of the fixings for good writing.

It hit me this morning as I sat with my computer in my lap, staring at the Christmas tree for inspiration:

Some seasons are just for listening and learning.

They will be quieter times in life, which is something our Instagram, fast-paced world doesn’t encourage. There might be a little less engagement. But I don’t want to be afraid of not having followers here or on Instagram.

I don’t want to live life forcing output, making noise just to keep up.

Sometimes, we are meant only to listen.

I’ve been doing this month’s #AdventWord on Instagram. This morning the word was sprout. As I sat quietly with the word, attempting to meditate (which is something I never seem to get much better at!), I felt the Lord encouraging me to trust what is sprouting in my life. I have a lot of little ideas and half blog posts. A lot of beginnings, but I can’t quite see where they’re headed. I was reminded, this morning, that just because we can’t always see the full picture, doesn’t mean it isn’t working together. The little sapling in the woods isn’t irrelevant, just because we haven’t yet realized it’s part of the entire forest.

I often find these quiet seasons to be the calm before the storm. Not bad storms, but, instead the ones that wash over us. The all-consuming, big-idea seasons. The fast-paced, everything is coming together ones.

So I’m remembering, today, to be still, to love my little and to trust what is sprouting.