Stillness. It’s a place where I’m alone with my thoughts and the Lord. It’s a place my soul is learning to rest. Getting here has been a gradual journey. Some days my introverted side loves the quiet; other days the extrovert in me wants a community with hearts most like mine. At the core of stillness is surrender. So I press in, soaking up the truths that He makes me aware of.

Most recently, the stillness finds me at my middle son’s hospital bedside. Sickness has a way of bringing life to a halt. So I surrender my thoughts and plans for this time—to wait, to focus, to listen, and to rest in God’s unwavering faithfulness.

My son’s illness didn’t catch the Lord by surprise. With every detail or event that the Lord allows to touch my day I linger, waiting to hear His voice. In the quiet, He reminds me of a few simple constants that my heavy heart needs to recall.

1. When life takes a curve, rendering you helpless and powerless, know that He is fighting for you and stands guard over every overwhelming detail. “The Lord will fight for you, and you must be quiet” (Exodus 14:14).

2. When you are tempted to worry, pray instead. “Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).

3. Hold tight to your faith because He’s with you always. “Jesus replied to them, ‘Have faith in God. Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, everything you pray and ask for—believe that you have received it and it will be yours” (Mark 11:22-24).

Sometimes these things are easier said than done, especially when fear creeps in. But though we go through life’s trials, God never deserts us. In fact, He willingly laid down His life for us. For all the brokenness, the mistakes, the hurts, the barren places, and for every inadequacy we feel, His sacrifice covers it all. It’s in the stillness I remember that one day I’ll see His face, and all the longings in this patched-up heart will become obsolete. He will fill in all the cracks of my soul with a love that completely fulfills. I’ll be whole. What a comfort. What a faithful Savior.

So when you find yourself in a place where you’re forced to be alone with your thoughts, it’s a good place to be. For it’s there, in the stillness, we hear the Lord.