Diving Down Beneath

I went to the Philippines a few years ago on mission. We were helping to build houses for some families there. After the mission time we went snorkelling on a coral reef (I know it was tough right). What a contrast to our mission experience. As I stuck my head under the surface of the water I was amazed at what lay beneath. I spent hours checking out the coral and coloured fish below the surface. It was a whole new world down there. My favourite experience was seeing an actual real live turtle. I held my breath and dived down to touch it. As I did this, I was blown away with how quiet it was below the surface. The sound of the waves had disappeared and all was silent. It was so different to the crazy traffic of Manila that we had just been in. 

So much of our lives are lived on the surface, with all the traffic and noise. The waves of life go up and down and we just keep battling on. There’s so much going on in our lives at the best of time. There is so much noise, so much pressure to achieve, to work hard and to stay on top of things. How are we supposed to hear God’s voice in all this noise and craziness? Funny you ask. Well, here’s a rap to solve all our problems:

I’m so nervous

below the surface

I want to take this ride

So free me up inside

There’s so much noise in my head

Kill this! I’m looking for some stillness

I’m diving down beneath

Where the waves will cease

release, chitter chatter

Be at peace!

A new horizon, realising that my heart is free

Opening up to silence inside of me

Slow down don’t miss it, 

it’s like a gentle breeze

Setting your heart at ease

From this storm to perform for the world to see

So before you drown – slow down!

And relax your pace

This isn’t a race just enjoy the space.

Now silence isn’t simply the absence of sound

It’s more profound, underground

where God’s presence is found

So right here be aware of an unspeakable peace.

As you unwind your mind and relax your soul

Give over control, 

to the one who has loved you from the very start

As you rest in his presence

And surrender your heart

So if you are picking up what I’m putting down…If you want to hear God’s voice, you need to find some time each day to just chill with God. The obvious step is to get away from all the noise for a while and have some actual physical silence. Find a quiet place where you can be alone. As you enter into the silence you become very much aware of all the noise that is going on in your head. So many distractions… ‘I need to get on top of that task!’, ‘I’m so anxious about that thing’, ‘how I am going to fix that up?’ The babble is endless and it all seems so urgent at the time. 

Well, I want to suggest that you don’t have to sort out all the issues in your life to find the silence inside. There is actually a peace inside of you, below all the noise. This is the place in your heart where God’s presence is found. You just need to dive down a little deeper to find it. Imagine you are going deep sea diving, as you dive down deeper the noise starts to quieten in your mind. The distractions still go on, but you are not as concerned about them anymore. You acknowledge them, but you keep diving down a little deeper “…where the waves will cease, release chitter chatter be a peace.” 

It is in this quiet place where you can just be with God. You can talk to him, you can sit and be aware of him dwelling inside you. It’s in this place where you can just be yourself. “As you unwind your mind and relax your soul. Give over control, to the one who has loved you from the very start, as you rest in his presence and surrender your heart.”

As you practice diving down below the surface each day, you start to realise that this quiet place is actually always present in you. You start to become aware that you can go diving anytime of the day, no matter what you are doing or what is going on around you. You can allow your mind and heart to dive down below the waves and enter in to God’s presence, where you can listen to his heart for you. If you make this a regular practice and it will slowly change your life. 

Fr Chris Eaton is a priest from the Missionaries of God's Love  and a proud Kiwi from Christchurch, New Zealand. He currently resides in Canberra and is a lover of soccer, youth ministry, travelling, outdoor adventures, snickers bars and the Lord. Famous for his mid-mass rapping and his "peak" moment of his priestly vocation - celebrating mass on top of Mt Kosciuszko in the snow - he  is a wealth of wisdom and rhyming, rhythmic genius,