To the mom with noise in her head

When I first became a mom, one of the weirdest transitions for me was how often I was alone in my thoughts. I saw how quickly my thoughts could become idle, down, depressed, and anxious. I recognized that everything I saw, heard, or participated in either increased or decreased the noise level within my soul. Even if I was alone in a quiet room, I could be filled with the inner noise of anxiety, turmoil, confusion, and distraction. To this day, I have to continually fight against this inner noise—especially within my motherhood. I know many moms have to do this. There are so many loud, compelling voices competing for our attention in our minds, and it is vital that we make room for the still, small voice to bring peace and stillness. The invitation to, “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalms 46:10), reminds us of our need to still our souls, our hearts, and our minds. It requires more effort than just physically being still.

James E. Faust powerfully taught,

“How are you possibly going to select what voices you will listen to and believe? You will not be able to travel through life on borrowed light. The voice you must learn to heed is the voice of the Spirit. The Spirit's voice is ever-present but it is calm. The adversary tries to smother His voice with a multitude of loud, persistent, appealing voices. Murmuring voices that conjure up perceived injustices, pointing voices that abhor challenge and work, seductive voices offering sensual enticements, flattering voices that puff us up with pride, commercial voices that tempt us to spend money for that which is of no worth and our labor for that which cannot satisfy.

“In your generation, you will be barraged by multitudes of voices telling you how to live, how to gratify your passions, how to have it all. There will be all sorts of software, satellite receivers and communication networks that will suffocate you with information. You will be bombarded with evil and wickedness like no other generation.

“I have suggested a simple solution for selecting the channel which you will attune yourselves to. Listen to and follow the voice of the Spirit. This is an ancient solution, even eternal, and may not be popular in a society whose always looking for something new. This solution requires patience in a world that demands instant gratification. This solution is quiet, peaceful and subtle. This solution requires you to walk by faith in a world governed by sight. Learn to ponder the things of the Spirit and respond to its promptings. Filter out the static generated by Satan. As you become attune to the Spirit, "thine ears shall hear a word behind thee saying this is the way, walk ye in it." Hearkening to the voice of the living God will give you peace in this world and eternal life in the world to come. These are the greatest of all the gifts of God.”

I don’t know about you, but this is something I really, really need in my motherhood. I want to hear the calming voice of the Spirit over the distracting noise of the world. I want feel guided and uplifted rather than bombarded and confused. But it can be easier said than done, right? How can moms find time to be still with screaming kids, busy lives, and demanding schedules? (Not to mention the internet—telling us what to wear, how to look, what to eat, how to parent, who to like, what to believe, where to go, and how to properly blink😉). Our plates are full and life can create a whole lot of noise.

Elder Gerald N. Lund provides an answer, “The Lord’s voice is still and small and it whispers. If our lives are filled with “noise,” we will find it difficult to hear. We must find ways to reduce the inner noise in our lives and create times of inner stillness and quiet.”

As moms, we can find ways to reduce the inner noise and create more times of inner stillness. Satan works hard to make us think we don’t have time for such moments, but we can’t fall for his lies. If we make it a priority, it is possible for us to be still—each day. It definitely will take effort, patience, faith, planning, and persistence—but that it is a small price to pay for the blessings that come. To feel free of noise is a blessing worth fighting for. We need to privately pray, study the scriptures/words of the prophets, record impressions, ponder, attend the temple, etc. These moments of quiet and stillness are invaluable and important. It might take some reorganizing of how we spend our time or what we focus our minds on—but I know with the Lord’s help we can do it! Maybe it means putting our phones down or spending less time on social media. Maybe it means reading the scriptures before watching TV at night or reading a general conference talk instead of browsing the internet. Maybe it means getting up earlier in order to pray more sincerely or replacing idle time with contemplation. Whatever this picture looks like for each of us, the Spirit will guide us on how to create opportunities to be still (Jacob 4:13).

Also, we must remember that stillness can be ours beyond having personal quiet time. We don’t have to always be in a quiet place in order to be still. Just as one can be in a quiet room and feel filled with noise, the opposite holds true, too. One can be in a noisy room and be filled with quiet and peace. Some of my quiet, still moments of my motherhood have been while rocking a crying baby, nurturing a sick child, or pondering in a car full of loud kids. I know it is important to have quiet time, too; but we must remember that stillness can be ours in many different settings. The key is attuning our hearts and minds to the Godhead, regardless of our circumstances (Alma 37:36-37, 2Nephi 9:39, Mosiah 4:30).

To be honest, I know I am writing this blog post because this is something the Lord needs me to work on. I let “noise” in my life far too often, and I don’t like how it makes me feel. I want to do better at reducing the noise in my life and creating more times of inner stillness and quiet. I want to hear the voice of the Lord in my life. I want to feel closer to Him.

Not long ago, the Lord helped me to re-learn the importance of being still. It was a day when I felt consumed by anxious thoughts and feelings. I read a news article on Facebook that really bothered me, I was worried about something someone said to another, and I felt stressed about an upcoming trip. I felt overwhelmed and I didn’t like it. So, I knelt down in my room, and began to sincerely pray. I told Heavenly Father about all of my concerns and worries. I asked for forgiveness for my mistakes. I pleaded for help, guidance, and blessings. As I focused my mind and energy into communing with my Father, I had a special moment. I suddenly was enveloped in total silence and stillness. Peace and quiet filled my mind and heart. For the first time that day, I felt completely free of the inner noise. I felt still, and I felt close to Him. Tears filled my eyes as I humbly thanked my Heavenly Father for this precious gift.

As I prayed, I wasn’t expecting that feeling of stillness to be my answer, but it was exactly what I needed. And it wasn’t just my answer in that moment; it was an answer for a lot of my trials and worries. I was reminded that I must take time—daily—to be intentionally still. If I don’t make the effort, the Spirit’s voice and influence will continually be drowned out by the day to day noise life brings.

I hope what I’ve shared is a reminder of how much Heavenly Father loves us, and yearns to be close to us—but He can’t be if we continually drown Him out with “noise.” I hope we will choose to lessen the noise in our lives and come closer to He who knows and loves us best. May we be blessed with peace and clarity in our motherhood as we learn to, “Be still, and know that I am God.” (Psalms 46:10)