Selah

My word for 2020 is listen. When God gave me that word near the end of 2019, I thought it was really lackluster. I kept searching for a word that was a bit spicier, but listen is what prevailed. I kept getting this sense that I needed to learn to lean in and truly listen to God.

Fast forward to April 2020 and listen seems to be a pretty apropos word. We are in the middle of unprecedented war. We are all dealing with the unfamiliar because we have never been here before. From a church leader’s standpoint, we have always been able to gather in person. But overnight everything shifted to an online platform. During this time there are lots of so-called church experts sharing their wisdom, opinions, and even drawing off of similar experiences in the past. Yet, there are no experts. No one has been through what we are going through now. So who do I listen to? Ah, now we are back at my word for 2020.

The word Selah appears 71 times in the book of Psalms. Most of the Psalms are written as lyrics that God’s people sang frequently. Selah is a musical mark that is used to indicate there is an interlude or a pause in the song. There is a break in the action. Literally, Selah means to “stop and listen.” Yes, listen. I like how the Amplified Bible puts it: “pause and think calmly about.”

We are living in one big Selah right now. There has been a break in the action. Most of our idols have disappeared or at least put on hold. Perhaps God is using this pandemic to get us to “stop and listen.” To lean in and truly listen to God. May we all just be still and know… (Psalm 46:10).

What are you do during this Selah to lean in and listen? I would love to hear how that is going for you. What is God saying? How is God working in your life during this Selah? Feel free to reply to this email or leave your thoughts in the Facebook comments and I’ll respond to you!

Ryan