November 5: The Pause in the Middle of the Day

You’re halfway through a hard day, and you can feel yourself winding tighter. What now?

The morning prayer went fine. You felt okay when you left the house. Then the day happened. Traffic. A tense meeting. A phone call that went sideways. Now it’s two in the afternoon and your shoulders are up around your ears.

Step Eleven isn’t only for mornings and nights. It reaches into the middle of the day too. When you feel agitated or doubtful, the practice is simple: pause. Stop for a moment. Ask God for the right thought or the right action. Remind yourself that you’re not running the show.

That pause can be very short. Ten seconds. A breath in, a breath out, and a few words. “Lord, what’s the next right thing?” Or “Help me here.” Or “Thy will, not mine.” Then go back to what you were doing, a little steadier.

Isaiah wrote to people who kept trying to save themselves by rushing around. Making alliances. Running to other nations for help. And God said through him, “In returning and rest you will be saved. In quietness and in confidence will be your strength.” And then the sad part: “You refused.” They chose to rush instead.

Most of us know that refusal well. It feels like there’s no time to stop. It feels like if you pause, everything will fall apart. But the pause doesn’t slow your day down. It usually saves time, because you make fewer mistakes when you’re calm. You say fewer things you’ll need to apologize for later.

It helps to tie the pause to something that already happens. Every time you get in the car. Every time you wash your hands. Every time the phone rings. Little reminders, built into the day, until pausing becomes a habit.

And if you blew it already today, that’s all right. Pause now. It’s not too late. Quietness and confidence are available at four in the afternoon just as much as at seven in the morning.

One thing today

Choose one thing that happens several times a day, like washing your hands or getting in the car. Each time it happens today, pause and pray one short sentence.

A prayer

Lord, I rush when I should rest. Teach me to stop in the middle of my day and turn to You. Give me quietness and confidence, and show me the right thought for this moment. Amen.

The midday pause is part of Step Eleven.

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