The primary focus of this podcast episode revolves around the concept of living the "Selah life," which emphasizes the importance of intentional pauses to reconnect with the presence of God amidst the chaos of daily life. I, Kimberly Lockinour, endeavor to guide listeners through a journey of spiritual encouragement and personal reflection, inviting them to create space for God in their everyday lives. We explore the significance of pausing, akin to the biblical term "Selah," which denotes a moment for reflection and deeper understanding of God’s truths. This episode serves as a gentle invitation to acknowledge God’s presence, to embrace rest without guilt, and to foster a relationship that transcends mere routine. Together, we will uncover how these intentional moments can lead to healing, hope, and a renewed sense of purpose in our spiritual walks. The concept of 'Selah' serves as the cornerstone of this enlightening podcast episode, where Kimberly Lockinour leads listeners through a journey of rediscovering the significance of pause in their spiritual walks.

Through her personal narrative, Kimberly recounts her experiences of spiritual exhaustion and the divine invitation to sit still in God's presence, particularly during the upheaval of 2020. This episode provides a rich exploration of how intentional moments of stillness can rejuvenate the soul and foster a transformative relationship with the divine. Kimberly articulates that 'Selah' is not merely a call to silence but a powerful invitation to reflect on God's truths and allow them to permeate one's heart. She emphasizes that the act of pausing is essential for spiritual health and provides practical insights for listeners to integrate this practice into their daily lives.

Takeaways:

1. The podcast emphasizes the importance of intentional pauses to reconnect with God amidst life's chaos.
2. Listeners are encouraged to recognize the necessity of spiritual pauses for personal growth and healing.
3. The Selah life is about cultivating a daily awareness of God's presence in both ordinary and extraordinary moments.
4. The host shares her personal journey of spiritual exhaustion and the transformative power of sitting with God.
5. Engaging in stillness and reflection allows individuals to hear God's whispers and gain clarity in their lives.
6. The podcast offers practical suggestions for integrating moments of pause into a busy daily routine.

The content shared on Living the Selah Life is for spiritual encouragement, personal reflection, and informational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat or replace medical, psychological or professional advice of any kind.

Please consult a licensed healthcare provider or qualified professional for any physical, mental or emotional health concerns. The views expressed are are those of the host, Kimberly Lockinour, and are based on personal experience and Biblical insight, not clinical training.

Welcome to Living the Selah Life, a podcast that invites you to slow down, to breathe and reconnect with the presence of God. I am your host, Kimberly Lockanore. Going forward, you can call me Kim and this space is for anyone longing to become more familiar with his presence.

Maybe you're feeling worn out by life or you simply want to grow closer to God.

Each episode is an intentional pause, a moment to reflect, realign and remember that God meets us when we develop a desire for him to do so and we create a space for Him. Whether you're in a season of healing, transition, or awakening to something new, I pray this space becomes a gentle refuge and a reset.

So take a breath. You are right on time. Let's live the Selah life together. Hey there friend. I am so glad you decided to join me today.

If you're folding laundry right now, or driving to work or just sitting with your coffee trying to catch your breath for a minute, you are in the right place. This podcast is my heart poured out.

It comes from the rawest places of my own journey with God, and it is for anyone who feels like life is moving just a little bit too fast and you're wondering where God is in all of it.

If you're tired and not even sure why, or maybe you love Jesus but feel like you're constantly running on empty, that's what we're going to walk through on this podcast, how to live that kind of life. The kind that listens for God's whispers in the ordinary and the extraordinary moments.

The kind that finds him in the middle of laundry or playing with your children, but also in the big decisions and overwhelming seasons. The kind that learns to rest without feeling guilty.

So I want to tell you what this whole Selah life thing means to me and what the word Selah actually means according to scholars. So the word selah appears 74 times in the Bible. It occurs 71 times in the book of Psalms and 3 times in the Book of Habakkuk.

Most scholars believe that the word Selah was a musical instruction that meant to pause here or to stop and reflect. It was a deliberate break in the flow, like a chance to stop, to take a breath and allow what had just been sung or spoken to truly sink in.

How often do we actually do that?

How often do we pause and allow God's truth to settle into our hearts instead of rushing on to the next verse, the next chapter, the next thing, Consider this. David is pouring his heart out to God in these psalms. In Psalms 3, he's crying out about his enemies surrounding him.

He says, but you, Lord, are a shield around me. And then there it is. Selah pause here. Let that truth about God's protection really sink in.

Or in Psalms 46, after declaring that God is our refuge and strength and ever present help in trouble, there's another Selah, stop. Don't rush past this. Let this reality of God's presence settle down in your spirit. So to Selah, to me, it's a posture.

So when I say living the Selah life, I mean living from a place of rest, awareness, and intentional presence with God. Not just every once in a while, but daily. And I know that it is not easy. I am not here to say that it is going to be super easy all the time.

What I will say is that it is mandatory and it is fruitful, and most of all, it is worth it. Because in those pauses, something happens you begin to hear, you begin to heal, and you begin to hope.

So this podcast is about creating intentional space. You will hear me say that word intentional many, many, many times, because it is with intention that we pause.

So on this podcast, we're creating an intentional space to experience the presence of God outside of just being in a crisis, but in ordinary moments, in moments where there's nothing particularly dramatic happening in those moments. So you don't have to have everything all perfect. You just have to be willing to try.

What matters is awareness, remembering that God is with you right where you are. So let's begin with why so many are so spiritually exhausted.

I absolutely did not. When he said, you need to sit still before me, my immediate first thought was, and do what?

Sit still before you and do what I was doing, all the things I was serving in my church, I was a group leader in my church. I was reading my Bible, I was saying my prayers. I was doing all the things that Christians do, you know, to be able to live a godly lifestyle.

But behind the obedience was an aching soul. And after the Lord told me to sit with him and I didn't, probably maybe a month or two after, I came home one day and I was just spent. I was spent.

I was just done. And not even about anything in particular I'm seeing now in hindsight, he clearly drove me to that point, but I did not in the moment.

And I sat on my bedroom floor and I said, lord, I don't have another prayer to pray. And I sat there, I started crying. And as I just sat there, no words, no nothing except for my raw emotions, the presence of the Lord filled my space.

So to. Whereas I will never forget it, and to this date, I have never felt his presence like that again.

I've been chasing it ever since, but I've never felt that. And when his presence came in my room like that, my heart lifted and something within me just shifted.

Life was still life, you know, life was still lifing like it always does. But I was different. I was hopeful, I was joyful, I was just different. And my heart was so lifted.

And so after that, I was like, maybe there is something to this sitting with the Lord thing. And so I began to do it. And let me tell you, it has indeed been a journey, because sitting still with him is not easy at first.

Or let me say it wasn't for me, because we're so used to doing a whole bunch of stuff and praying a whole bunch of prayers, and we're warring against the devil and we're doing this and we're doing that and. And it's hard to just sit down when he says, I am your shield and your exceeding great reward when he says, labor to enter into my rest.

It's hard for us to just rest, to just sit down and rest. We always have to be doing. And so it probably took me. You know what?

I'm not going to tell you how long it took me, because every person's journey is different. My sister has walked the exact same path I did, and her journey was different from mine. So I won't say that.

But what I will say is, for me, as I begin to sit with him, initially I couldn't do it for more than 10 minutes because I would start thinking about the emails I have at work, the groceries that need to be shopped for the friend that I didn't call back. What am I gonna make for lunch tomorrow? Just everything. And I asked the Holy Spirit, who. Who is that girl talking? She is so loud.

And he said, that would be your soul. And I'm like, wow, she's doing the absolute most. But no worries, here we are today.

And needless to say, I did end up incorporating the practice of what I call stillness. Stillness, what I call the Selah life.

And I will say this, sitting with the Lord has been the most beneficial thing I have done in my entire saved walk. There is no practice. Hear me when I say this.

There is no spiritual practice that has benefited my life more than sitting before him, sitting with him in silence, learning his heart, learning to posture, my heart after his heart, speaking my prayers to him, heart to heart. No spiritual practice has benefited my life more. And here is something else that I learned.

Pausing to experience and acknowledge the presence of God is not optional. It is mandatory. We are trying to live life without his presence, and that is a disaster. It is not sustainable.

God created us to live in relationship with him, not to figure out life on our own.

That whisper sits still before me became the seed of this podcast because I believe there are so many of us who are faithful but tired, super strong but silent, gifted but grasping for rest. Living the Selah life is about grace. And I want to give you that permission today, that same permission that God gave me.

I also want to say that pausing is an acknowledgment of the Lord. You're not emptying your mind, as I know some meditation practices teach to empty your mind and to think of nothing.

That is not what we're talking about here. It is an intentional act of focusing your awareness on the Lord. That is what we do when we pause.

And as you begin to do it, he will let you know where to reflect that attention. Whether it be the scripture, whether it just be sitting with him, whatever it is, he will eventually direct you there.

But if he doesn't direct you there, simply saying, God, I acknowledge your presence and saying nothing and just focusing your heart on him, on who he is. So you should try it. There is a saying that goes like this. You become what you behold.

And I have learned through personal experience that that is very true. We have friends, we have family, we have our besties, we have favorite people that we like to be around.

And the Bible says that bad company spoils good morals or something to that effect. Don't misquote me If I misquoted myself, but that, you know, basically you hang around. What you hang around is who you become.

So imagine if you are hanging around the one that made you, you're becoming more like Him. And most of the time, especially in the beginning, you don't even notice that it's happening.

Something else that I gained from stillness that I see is utterly lacking in so many households is the heart of God. Many people know the word of God, but the Bible says the letter killeth. Without his heart, the letter kills.

And so you're seeing the word being weaponized. There's a bunch of that going on. When you sit with him, it's like he infuses his heart into you. You become what you behold.

You begin to think like him, you begin to speak like Him. You begin, well, who am I kidding? I absolutely do not talk like God, but I do think like Him. And the biggest thing is I feel for people like Him.

We are in the bash and the platforms of discrediting people and things like that. People within our own families, within our own spheres. We are tearing them down. Society is tearing them down.

And when I ask God his heart on the matter, most of the time I don't even have to ask anymore because I already know the way that he feels is so different. He said to me before, it is for this purpose in which I came.

And so let us remember that I hope I've encouraged you to try this with me and that it becomes a lifestyle for you as well. So there's a verse that has become foundational to my understanding of what selah life means. And it's actually the banner for my ministry.

And it's found in Psalms 36 and 9, where David says, for with you is the fountain of life. In your light we see light. For with you is the fountain of life. In your light we see light.

So this verse captures something super powerful about our relationship with God. David is showing us a spiritual truth about how we're designed to function. So there's a couple of things.

First, we notice that God is called the fountain of life. And when you think about a fountain, it's a source. It's a place where water springs up from and flows out continuously.

David is saying that God is the very source from which our life springs. Every breath, every heartbeat, every moment of existence flows from Him.

And when we try to live disconnected from this fountain, we are essentially trying to survive on our own reserves, which we all know will inevitably run dry. Then David takes it a step further. In your light, we See light. And this is where the Selah life comes in.

Light here represents understanding, wisdom, clarity, and revelation.

David is saying that our ability to truly see, to understand ourselves, our circumstances, our purpose, our next steps, comes from being in God's light. So if we think about this practically, let's just say you're in a dark room and you can't accurately assess what's around you.

You might think there's a wall where there's a doorway, or you might stumble over obstacles because you can't see. But when the light comes on in that room, everything becomes clear. You can see the path forward to the door.

You understand your surroundings, and you know where you are. And this is what happens. When we create intentional space to experience God's presence in that space, in his light, we begin to see clearly.

Things that felt confusing at first can start to make sense because we're seeing them from God's perspective instead of our own. And some decisions that seemed absolutely impossible can become clearer because we're not trying to figure them out with our own wisdom.

We're asking for His. We live in such a fallen world. Information comes at us from every direction.

Social media bombards us with opinions and comparisons, and we're constantly questioning ourselves, wondering if we're making the right choices. We can feel overwhelmed by all the voices that are telling us what we should do, what we shouldn't do.

But when we pause, when we create this intentional space to be in God's presence, things shift, confusion clears. And God doesn't necessarily give us a detailed blueprint for the next five years. I mean, even though he can, but that's not usually the case.

But he does give us enough light for the next step in the moment that we need it. And that's really all we need. The fountain of life sustains us. The light of his presence guides us.

And this is why the Selah life works, because it connects us back to Him. So now you may be thinking that all this sounds just great, but your life is a mess. You've got kids screaming.

You got things that are coming due, you got bills that need to be paid, and you can barely find time to take a shower, let alone to sit in God's presence. And I get it. I promise you, I do.

You might not have an hour every day to do it, and that's fine, because most of the living, the Selo life happens in small moments that are woven throughout your regular day.

So it could be when you're in the car, say you stuck in traffic, instead of scrolling on your phone, or even talking on your phone, you can say, God, I'm here. What do you want to tell me right now? Or a big one for me is what is on your heart right now? What do you want to tell me right now?

And what's on your heart right now? God, is there anything that you would like me to think about with you?

You'd be surprised at the things that he would begin to come to you and say outside of those spaces when you become concerned about what's on his heart.

When you make space for God's presence, even in tiny pockets throughout your day, you start to experience the peace that passes understanding that Paul talks about in Philippians 4. 7. You find yourself less anxious, more patient, more hopeful, and a bunch of other mores. Those are just a few.

And it's because you're not living from your own resources. You're connected to the fountain of life. So I'm going to introduce something called pause prompts.

And these are basically just personal reflection questions that we will do before we go into our Selah moment, which is the purpose of this podcast. We will have a a guided Selah moment every single week.

Pause prompts are simply questions designed to help you pause and honestly look at your life and your relationship with God. They are not meant to make you feel guilty or like you're failing.

They're meant to help you become more aware of where you are, what you're carrying, and how God might be inviting you to grow so you can think of them as a gentle way to check in with your soul. So here we go. Pause prompt number one. Am I trying to live my Christian life without actually spending time with God?

When was the last time I felt God's presence in a real way? What would change if I started inviting God into ordinary moments of my day? Am I spiritually exhausted?

What does that feel like in my body and my heart? And lastly, where do I most need God's light and clarity right now? There's no rush here whatsoever.

Let these questions be a gentle invitation to notice what's happening in your heart and your relationship with God right now. Remember, God reveals to redeem he is not the author of condemnation. So let's pause together.

Wherever you are, whatever you're doing, let's take some time to just be with God. This is the heart of what we're talking about, creating that intentional space to accept, experience his presence.

If you can put your hand on your heart, feel it beating, that's God giving you life right now, in this moment. Take a Breath in and let it out slowly. Let your shoulders drop and let your mind quiet. And I'm going to pray for you.

Father, you know exactly where each person listening is right now.

You know what they're carrying in their hearts today, the burdens they haven't spoken, the worries that keep them up at night, and the hopes that they're too afraid to voice. Would you meet each listener with right where they are?

Your presence isn't limited by location or circumstance, whether they're in their car, at their kitchen table, in the bed, or just walking through their day. God, I pray for the person who's feeling spiritually dry, who's been going through the motions but can't seem to feel you anymore.

Remind them that your love is isn't based on their feelings. It's based on your faithfulness. I pray for those who are overwhelmed by life's pace, who feel like they're constantly, constantly not enough.

Give them permission to pause. Help them to see that rest isn't being lazy.

It's actually a form of obedience for those facing difficult seasons, job struggles, relationship challenges or health concerns, financial stress. God, I ask that you be their refuge and their strength when they can't see the path forward. Be their light for the next step.

Father, help all of us learn to pause throughout our days, not just when we're desperate. Help us remember that you're always there, always near, always ready to give us your wisdom and peace for whatever we're facing.

Create in us a hunger for your presence that's stronger than any other thing. May this not just be a moment we experienced, but a way of life that we embrace. It is in Jesus mighty name that we pray and it is so.

Although I prayed for you and I was speaking, when you pause before the Lord, generally the prayers are in your heart and you are not audibly speaking. So I want to make space for that. I want you to just sit here for a minute and just reflect on in the goodness of God.

So here's what you can expect from this podcast going forward. We're going to dive deeper into what it looks like to live aware of God's presence. I'll share more of my story where there's plenty of them.

We'll look at what the Bible says about rest and relationship with God and we'll always have these little pause moments where we can practice this together. Some episodes might have guests, some might be just me sharing what God's been teaching me, but they'll all come back to the central idea.

God is with you. And you can learn to live aware of that truth. Thanks for being with me today.

If this encouraged you at all, please share it with someone else who might need to hear it. And if you're thinking Kim, this all sounds amazing, but I could really use some help learning how to actually live this way.

I'd love to walk alongside you on this journey.

I have a 21 day group mentorship program starting in a few weeks and I also have some spots available for those who prefer something more private and one on one. If you're more of a let me figure this out on my own type of person, I also have a 21 day Salah journey that you can take at your own pace.

For any of these options, just send me an email at Living the Selah Life at Proton Me that's Living the Selah Life at Proton Me and I'll get you all the information.

For more Selah moments and daily devotionals, please follow me on Facebook and Instagram at Living the selah Life or YouTube at Living the Selah Life. Until next time. Remember, you can walk in his light minute by minute. You don't have to live disconnected from God's presence.

God has so much more than that for you. So may you go from this place rested not just in body, but in spirit, carrying the awareness that his presence is always near you.

May you be rooted not in the shifting voices of this world, but in the unshakable Word of God, the Logos that ground you and the rhema that guides you. For man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

And may you keep rising into the life he designed for you, into purpose, into peace, into the fullness of his calling. May your life become a living Selah, an intentional pause that reveals his presence to others in Jesus name. And it is so Selah.