The other morning, I sat down with my Bible and realized how quickly I shift into movement: pray, ask, listen, learn.
Even in my time with God, I instinctively lean forward ready to be led somewhere. Forward feels productive. Forward feels spiritual.
But a quieter question rose in me: What would it feel like to let myself be held rather than led?
And I didn’t know the answer.
Resting in God’s Presence Isn’t Passive
For most of my life, my relationship with God has been active. I’ve come with journaling supplies, prayer requests, and questions I hoped He would answer.
And that has been good. But I’ve noticed something about my own heart lately.
I have loved well and shown up faithfully in many spaces. But I didn’t always notice how much I needed to be held too.
Even in faith, I sometimes come to God ready to “do” something.
But resting in God’s presence feels different. It doesn’t require direction or ask for performance.
It simply invites closeness.
What It Feels Like to Be Held by God
When I stopped trying to move the moment forward, something softened.
One night I was stretched out on the couch, reading. The house was quiet. I felt deeply relaxed in a way that almost surprised me.
Normally, even in rest, there’s a quiet hum of ‘You should be doing more.’
But that night, I didn’t feel it. I felt content. Almost surprised by it. As if someone had quietly given me permission to just be there.
And it struck me that learning to rest with God had begun to spill into the rest of my life.
Being held in His presence was teaching my body how to settle.
The quiet didn’t feel empty. It felt steady. Like sitting beside someone who is not asking anything from you. Just your nearness.
And for a woman who is used to being needed, that kind of love feels like relief.
Just being wanted.
That’s what companionship in quiet has begun to feel like for me. Not striving toward God. Resting against Him.
What would it feel like to let yourself be held rather than led?
Maybe today, instead of asking what He wants to teach you, you simply let Him hold you.
