When it comes to balancing our spiritual priorities with the demands of each day, it can be easy to feel like we have to add more tasks to our already stacked to-do lists. But even within the hustle of modern life, God makes it possible to find stillness within our schedules—and come closer to Him through this beautiful process.
On a recent episode of the Magnify podcast, author Carrie Skarda joined host Brooke Walker to discuss how the gospel of Jesus Christ allows us to access the divine rest already available to us.
Usually, when we think of trying to incorporate mindfulness into our lives, we imagine adding more things to our calendars, building in time for meditation sessions, yoga classes, or wellness retreats. But following the admonition to “be still” isn’t another checkbox item, Carrie suggests—it’s a mindset: “God wants a relationship with us more than He wants us to complete any particular task.”
Seeking God’s Presence
Carrie came to understand this principle deeper than ever before during an exceptionally busy time in her life. She was juggling many responsibilities, including caring for young children and managing a busy calling and work schedule. She felt overwhelmed with figuring out how to accomplish it all.
When she prayed for help to know what to prioritize, she was surprised by the answer she received. “As I sat in that question, what came to me was: ‘All of those are good things, Carrie, but what I really want is just to sit with you.’ … And that was very humbling to me. …
“When I come to Him and am fed by Him or nourished with His presence, then I do feel more empowered to be able to discern … where can I best spend my energy.”
So what does it look like to sit with God and be “nourished with His presence”? One analogy that has helped Carrie is thinking about spending time with Him like warming ourselves in front of a fire. Bishop Desmond Tutu, the Anglican archbishop in South Africa, described prayer in this way: “I think [I am] trying to grow in just being there. Like when you sit in front of a fire in winter, you are just there in front of the fire, and you don’t have to be smart or anything. The fire warms you.”
During a time in her life when prayer was difficult, Carrie says that this concept helped her open back up to God and work through a difficult trial:
“Even in my anger or my confusion or my sadness, His presence was comforting to me. So, mindfulness helped me sort of peel back those layers of hurt like Joseph in the Sacred Grove, where he had to sit with the dark for a long time. And once I was able to … see that with more clarity and stay present with that, I’ve been able to come to a closer relationship with God and feel His light and warmth.”
The Brownie Effect and Spiritual Nourishment
This isn’t to say we don’t need to prioritize intentional spiritual habits like scripture study and temple attendance. As President Nelson has reminded us, “The Lord loves effort because effort brings rewards that can’t come without it.”
But we can find divine stillness in the things we’re already doing, trusting that, like bite-sized pieces, our efforts will contribute to spiritual nourishment over time.
“I think of it as kind of the ‘brownie effect,’” Carrie says. “I’ll have a pan of brownies on my counter, and I’ll be the only one home, and I’ll just take a little bit each time I walk by, and the next thing I know, [they’re gone]. And I say to myself that those calories don’t count, but obviously, they count.
“I think [spiritual] nourishment calories count too, even if they’re taken in bite sizes. We don’t have to have big, huge spiritual retreats…. We can take little bite-size practices, nibbles on mindfulness and meditation practices, and over time, that does have a benefit [for] us so we’re more prepared for those higher stake moments.”
Hear more from Carrie Skarda on the Magnify podcast, available in the player below or on your favorite streaming platform.
For more insights on stillness, check out these articles:
► Does your mind wander while you’re praying? You’re not alone (and why that’s OK)
► How meditation can make a drastic difference in a Latter-day Saint’s lifestyle
► Avoiding spiritual burnout: Slowing down and finding personal serenity
