I’ve been thinking a lot about the rhythm of rest lately. Sure, I have quiet time in the morning. I journal, read my Bible, pray and exercise. Sure, I practice a weekly Sabbath. All the right things. Yet, something was off. Something in my daily rhythm was off.

I felt distracted. Even when I removed distracting things from my space, I still found it hard to focus.

Then one day on LinkedIn, I came across an invitation to a Sacred Pause Virtual Mini-Retreat. I was curious. I signed up for it. An online retreat sounded like an oxymoron to me, but I was drawn to exploring something new given my old methods were not working effectively.

The mini-retreat was scheduled for a Friday afternoon at lunchtime. I blocked my calendar and planned to be there. Two pieces of instruction struck me right away — mics and cameras did not have to be on.

I logged on. Jenn, our host, led us through an hour of just being in a sacred space. She read scripture. Offered journaling prompts. But our required participation was just to be present. Nothing more. Nothing less.

After that hour, I felt so much better. But the problem in my daily rhythm remained. As the days went on, I was still out of sorts. I went back to Jenn’s website to look for resources and found a guide I downloaded, Sacred Pauses – Five Simple Practices to Slow Down and Reconnect with God. I printed it and set it near my bed.

A few days later, when I woke up, I decided not to engage in my regular quiet time routine and try each of the practices in the guide. It sounds like a lot, but it was only 2-3 minutes per practice. One by one, I went through them. When I was done, I felt grounded. I paid attention to my mind and body the rest of the day, noting that I was calmer, present and less distracted.

Later that evening, as I reflected on this difference, I realized my normal quiet time routine had turned into an opportunity to prove to God how much I could do to draw nearer to Him. I had effectively turned my quiet time into a to-do list, and my goal was to check everything off daily. I was doing the most.

Read so many chapters.

Spend so many minutes in prayer.

Journal so many pages.

I had turned my quiet time into more about doing and less about presence.

On paper, it may sound like following the five practices in Jenn’s guide is swapping one list for another, but what I realized was her guide forced me to slow down, pare down and be present. While I don’t do all five practices daily, I do have two that I’ve incorporated into my morning quiet time. And when I need to recalibrate in the middle of the day, I pick a practice to do. My problem isn’t completely solved, but I have a place to start.

Hi, my name is Brenda. I struggle with doing for the Lord. In 2026, I want to focus on being with the Lord.

If you’re interested in Jenn’s next mini-retreat will be on February 6, click here to sign up.

And if you’d like to check out her Sacred Pauses Guide, you can download it here.

Until next week …

Miracles + Blessings!

Brenda

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