Why is it so difficult to be still and quiet and let God speak to me about the meaning of my life? Is it because I don’t trust God? Is it because I don’t know God? Is it because I wonder if God is really there for me? Is it because I am afraid of God? Is it because everything else is more real to me than God? Is it because, deep down, I do not believe that God cares what happens at the corner of Yonge and Bloor?

Still there is a voice — right there, in downtown Toronto. “Come to me, you who labor and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your soul. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light” (Matthew 11:28-30).

Can I trust that voice and follow it? It is not a very loud voice, and often it is drowned out by the clamor of the inner city. Still, when I listen attentively, I will hear that voice again and again and come to recognize it as the voice speaking to the deepest places of my heart.

— Henri Nouwen, Here and Now

What happens when you listen to the still small voice within?