The Power of Quiet: Finding Your Voice Amidst the Noise

We share the ups and the downs , the highs and the lows and all the lessons learned along the way . It doesn't matter what chapter you are on in your story Maybe you're just getting started or , heck , maybe you're halfway through . What I know is , where intention goes , energy flows .

It's my most sincere hope that you will hear something in one or maybe many of these episodes that resonates with you and reminds you that you are not in this alone . As we venture into year two , I hope that you find a sense of connection and community when you're here , because we all deserve a place where we belong .

My name is Sunny and I am so glad you're here . If you're new , there's a few things you want to know about me . I am a huge book nerd and a wee bit of a control enthusiast , with an obsession for motivational coffee cups . I believe that a rising tide raises all ships and I invite you along in this journey to evoke greatness .

Back to another episode of Evoke Greatness . I'm curious has the noise of the world ever gotten too loud ? It has for me . I am climbing out from under a rock today and that rock has been a dark and quiet space that I have really needed .

Over the last couple of weeks there's been a whirlwind of things that have gone on and I won't go into all of them , but it's been overwhelming . A couple weeks ago , my son went on his first parent-free camping trip with friends and , long story short , it ended up in us ensuring we were going to be connected .

Throughout his time up camping turned into 48 hours of no contact , no idea where he was , and the last place that his phone pinged was a cliff . I'm sure some will say that I overreacted , but let me tell you my mama heart was really , really thrown for a loop and 48 hours of your kid up in the mountains and you having no idea whether they're okay .

That does something to you . I reached out to a handful of people those prayer warriors that are in my life and they really helped me navigate , but I will tell you that I didn't realize how much of an emotional toll that took on me .

Fortunately , about that 48-hour mark , my son was coming out of the mountains and got cell service again and called me immediately and I was so relieved but that really threw me for a loop and was just kind of dealing with the emotions around that , knowing he was okay . But that does something to you .

On top of that , my in-laws were coming in town , my kids were getting ready to go to a week of church camp and we've got a trip to Italy coming up and that is a lot of things to be doing and getting ready for on top of just day-to-day work . I mean , there's a lot going on .

And so I was just in this space where , like I didn't know how to process through all of it , which is just an interesting place to recognize yourself in . I think we don't always think about the importance around our mental health and well-being when it comes to being overwhelmed with things and when we're off we need to listen to that .

It took me a minute and I floundered in the meanwhile . You know it was interesting just from a creativity perspective . I found myself going online , different social platforms to make a post and feeling like a barren desert of creativity like nothing showed up for me and that was so frustrating and like I was disappointed in myself around it .

And the things that we don't always think about are the pressure that comes with having a presence and the feeling that we always have to be on . We don't always recognize that negative impact of the constant , constant stimulation coming at us in this world today . We've got social media , we've got news , we've got notifications , we've got emails .

We have all of these things that are flying at us and that doesn't always allow us to have time to just be still and quiet . I think periodic states of stillness and quiet , that quiet time , those are essential for our mental health .

Quiet time those are essential for our mental health and I think disconnecting from those things gives us the space and opportunity to be refreshed and restored . And I knew I needed to honor what I was feeling once I started to make sense of it .

But it took me a minute to make sense of it and when I honored that , I knew I needed to get quiet , that I knew I needed to quiet the external noise and duck out for a little bit and just get my bearings . I could like finally allow myself to sit with this the state that I was in .

We have such a sense of societal pressure to be constantly connected , and when we aren't , I don't know about you , but it's like managing maybe anxiety is too much of a word , too much of a description of it , but like we're managing that anxiety , or whatever you want to call it around , like missing out FOMO .

Fomo is real right , and so I , just through this process it made so it the light came on that it's that it's absolutely critical that we learn to prioritize our mental health over social expectations , and it can be really easy to just disconnect and to slip away in this digital world . And that was another piece . It was like every day .

Then a week went by and there just wasn't anything showing up for me . And the thing is is because we live in such a digital world , it's not only easy to slip away but to almost get a little lost . And so throughout this process , I also recognized it is so important to not get stuck in this place when we learn to set boundaries for ourself .

With whatever technology , whatever social media , whatever social pressures we're dealing with . We've got to find ways to limit the mindless scrolling , the rabbit hole chasing that we go down and I think that's just become .

We've got 56 tabs open on our computers , we've got all the tabs open on our phones and we're just , we go from one technology platform to another and learning to shut that out for a little bit and actually create a sense of quiet , shut out the world's noise for a minute , you actually , like , can begin to hear yourself , think again .

And I think that's the really interesting thing in having a social media presence or , you know , doing a podcast , all of these things . Like you , you have so many different voices of the world coming at you , right , if you're , if you're going on social media and you're looking at everybody else's posts , that's like a voice ping , ping , ping , ping .

These voices coming at you , these opinions coming at you , ping , ping , ping , ping , these voices coming at you , these opinions coming at you . You're listening to a podcast , you're watching YouTube videos . Man , we are inundated with other people's voices and you can get lost in , almost to a point where you lose a bit of your own voice .

And I want to caution people and I want to wave the red flag around that To make sure that you're not getting lost in the noise around you , rather that you're staying in tune with your own voice and your own thoughts and your own opinions and all of these things , like going through this experience , can be hard when we work from home , like we have such a

work from home society now , way more than we ever have , and that can add an element of isolation and loneliness to the mix . And I think that's another piece that we just have to be cognizant of is reaching out and having some sort of engagement , because , again , it's really important to get quiet and get still , but don't slip away , don't get stuck in that .

So , as I reemerge from under my dark , quiet rock today , I'm trying to be mindful to not go at it 100 miles an hour , you know , gradually reintegrating after a period of this quiet time that I've had and my friend KL said it best . She said I hope it's a slow . That's what I needed . I needed a slow climb out , and I don't .

I'm not always known for doing things slowly , but I knew in this moment I needed a slow climb out .

I don't know what you do when you're in a state like this , but I normally pray and I haven't been Not about this Until my devotional the last two days absolutely grabbed me by my lapel and I'm going to read you two days worth and I want you to hear for yourself .

And maybe it means something to different people and maybe people aren't even interested in it , but it was so profound for me in the state that I have been in the last couple of weeks that it made me recognize it and then it actually helped me in that slow climb .

And so yesterday's devotion this is from the Jesus Calling devotional says self-pity is a slimy , bottomless pit . Once you fall in , you tend to go deeper and deeper into the mire . As you slide down those slippery walls , you are well on your way to depression and the darkness is profound .

Your only hope is to look up and see the light of my presence shining down on you . Though the light looks dim from your perspective , deep in the pit , those rays of hope can reach you at any depth . While you focus on me and trust , you rise ever so slowly out of the abyss of despair . Finally , you can reach up and grasp my hand .

I will pull you out into the light again . I will gently cleanse you , washing off the clinging mire . I will cover you with my righteousness and connecting with my Heavenly Father , because that was what I needed , because , I will tell you , the devil loves nothing more than when you are in a state of despair or a dark place where you're just swirling .

The devil loves that . And so when you can recognize , okay , now I kind of see where I'm at and now I need to get to work . And so today it was like it really hit me and it was like , okay , it's . And so today it was like , whoo , it really hit me and it was like , okay , it's time to . It's time to come out , come out from underneath that rock .

Today's devotional has come away with me for a while . The world with its nonstop demands can be put on hold . Most people put me on hold , rationalizing that someday they will find the time to focus on me . But the longer people push me into the background of their lives , the harder it is for them to find me . You live among people who glorify busyness .

They have made time a tyrant that controls their lives . Even those who know me as Savior tend to march to the tempo of the world . They have brought into the illusion that more is always better More meetings , more programs , more activity . I have called you to follow me on a solitary path , making time alone with me , your highest priority and deepest joy .

It is a pathway largely unappreciated and often despised . However , you have chosen the better thing , which will never be taken away from you . Moreover , as you walk close to me , I can bless others through you .

So those were the two devotionals that got my attention and pulled me up out of the mud mire and got me in a state of prayer where I wanted clarity and I wanted to honor that quiet time . But I also knew that I needed to reach my hand up , because sometimes we can be in that slimy pit and we're not reaching up .

We're mad and we're pissed off and we're angry that we're there for whatever reason , but we're not reaching up to get out . And it's when it dawns on us that we can reach our hand up to be pulled out of there .

When you begin taking action to change the state that you're in , I saw this quote from Steve Jobs and it says don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice , and I just thought that was so applicable to at least the last couple weeks that I've been going through , and so I want you to honor what you're feeling , and if you need a

break . It's okay . It's okay to not be okay all the time . It's just not okay to stay there . So I encourage you to share what you're going through with the people around you . Support one another .

If there's anything I can do to support you or pray for you if you're in that dark , quiet place right now , just say the word and remember more than anything , take care of yourselves and each other and remember more than anything take care of yourselves and each other . Thank you so much for listening and for being here on this journey with me .

I hope you'll stick around

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If you go to my website , evokegreatnesscom , and go to the contact me tab , you'll just hit the big old orange button and record your message . I love the feedback and comments that I've been getting , so please keep them coming . I'll leave you with the wise words of author Robin Sharma Greatness comes by doing a few small and smart things each and every day .

It comes from taking little steps consistently . It comes from making a few small chips against everything in your professional and personal life that is ordinary , so that a day eventually arrives when all that's left is the extraordinary .