Dive into the ministry of noticing – slowing down to tune in to God’s voice, your emotions, and the people around you. Learn how awareness can deepen your relationship with Christ and bring healing, peace, and connection.
There was a long season of my life when I got really good at tuning myself out.
Sometimes, it was for good reasons…or at least what seemed like them at the time.
In my weight loss journey, it looked like having a food craving and “powering through” to eat my pre-planned dinner instead of running out for french fries. It meant getting up early to work out even when I really (really) didn’t want to. It meant saying no to dessert even when it looked and sounded so good.
Those were good things, disciplined things…but over time, the same skill that helped me make healthy choices started spilling over into unhealthy ones.
I powered through work to the point that I ignored my physical needs. I told myself I couldn’t take a break for a snack or even go to the restroom until I’d “earned it.”
I powered through my insomnia, expecting myself to function at the level of a fully rested person when I’d only gotten 20 minutes of sleep the night before.
And I powered through emotionally, too.
As a big feeler who was often told I was “too much,” I learned to minimize my emotions – to feel smaller, quieter, more socially appropriate.
But here’s the thing about tuning yourself out: it doesn’t make the noise go away.
You can stuff your emotions, but they’ll find a way to leak out. Through frustration, burnout, overeating, snapping at your spouse, or shutting down altogether.
I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was living numb to myself. And the longer I ignored what was really going on inside, the harder it became to hear God clearly, too.
Learning to Tune Back In
Over the last few years, I’ve been learning what it looks like to tune back in—to my own heart, to God’s voice, and to the people around me.
It’s been slow and sometimes uncomfortable work.
But it’s also been one of the most transformative gifts of my life.
I started noticing things again – my emotions, my body, the subtle nudges of the Holy Spirit that I used to breeze past.
There’s a reason I call this The Ministry of Noticing.
It’s not passive observation. It’s sacred participation.
It’s pausing long enough to notice what’s actually happening in you and around you, and letting God meet you right there.
Because the things you’re trying so hard to quiet?
They might actually be the very ways the Lord is trying to speak to you.
God Knows You Deeply
Psalm 139:23–24 says,
“Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!
And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.” (ESV)
The Hebrew word for “know” here, yada, and the Greek word ginosko, both carry a depth of intimacy far beyond intellectual knowledge.
Ginosko means to know experientially, to perceive and understand through relationship.
That’s how God knows us: not as an idea, but through loving awareness.
He notices every detail of who we are, every emotion, every intention, every tangled thought, every flicker of desire…and still, He stays.
When we begin to practice noticing ourselves through His eyes, that same intimate awareness starts to shape how we live.
Instead of powering through, we pause.
Instead of numbing, we name.
Instead of shaming, we show compassion.
This is the beginning of healing…and of hearing Him more clearly.
David: The Model of Attuned Faith
If anyone understood the sacredness of emotional honesty, it was David.
His psalms are full of attunement – to himself, to God, and to others.
He didn’t minimize or sanitize his emotions before bringing them to the Lord.
He poured them out raw:
“How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?” (Psalm 13:1)
“Why are you cast down, O my soul?” (Psalm 42:5)
“My tears have been my food day and night…” (Psalm 42:3)
And yet, over and over, his laments turn toward truth:
“But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.” (Psalm 13:5)
David didn’t deny the pain to declare God’s faithfulness.
He held both at once, honesty and hope.
That’s what noticing does.
It gives you the space to be fully human before a fully loving God.
The Holy Spirit’s Gentle Nudges
As I’ve slowed down and tuned in, I’ve become more aware of those quiet, holy “nudges.”
You know the ones:
That gentle prompting to text someone who comes to mind.
That sudden conviction to rest instead of rush.
That whisper to forgive, to let go, to trust.
John 10:27 says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”
Sometimes, we expect God’s voice to come in thunder and lightning.
But more often, it comes as a still, small voice—a stirring in your spirit, a tug on your heart.
The problem is, if you’ve tuned out your own emotions for years, you might miss it.
Learning to notice yourself again, your reactions, your desires, your discomforts, can actually re-sensitize you to the Spirit’s leading.
He often speaks through what’s already stirring inside us.
Noticing Yourself, Noticing God, Noticing Others
When you start noticing your own inner world with grace, something beautiful happens: you begin noticing others that way, too.
Romans 12:15 says,
“Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.”
That’s the essence of attunement – allowing someone else’s reality to exist beside your own, without minimizing or fixing it.
It’s what Jesus did perfectly.
He noticed Zacchaeus in the tree.
He noticed the bleeding woman in the crowd.
He noticed the tears of Mary and Martha.
Noticing is ministry.
It’s one way we can help meet that ache in all of us to feel seen and known, by reflecting El Roi, our God who sees.
It’s one of the purest ways to love.
The Fruit of Noticing
In Galatians 5:22–23, Paul writes,
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”
Those qualities aren’t personality traits to strive for. They’re fruit, evidence of life rooted in the Spirit.
You can’t force joy by pasting on a smile.
You can’t will yourself into peace through discipline.
Those “perfect” feelings we long for come from abiding, not achieving – from tuning in to God’s presence, not tuning out our reality.
It’s not self-help. It’s surrender.
When You Notice with Compassion
Noticing isn’t about wallowing or overanalyzing. It’s about bringing what’s true into the light.
When I started writing things down in my journal – thoughts, prayers, emotions – it forced me to slow down enough to put language to what I was feeling.
And in that space of naming things honestly before God, I started finding healing.
If I felt jealous, instead of scolding myself for being “ungrateful,” I could ask with compassionate curiosity
“Hmm…I wonder why I feel that way? What are my values here?”
That kind of gentle awareness often led me to something deeper – a lie I’d been believing, a longing I’d been suppressing, or a wound I hadn’t acknowledged.
And right there, in the noticing, God began to restore what I’d hidden.
Practicing the Ministry of Noticing
If you want to begin your own practice of noticing, here are a few suggestions for places to start:
Pause before you power through.
Take a slow breath. Check in with yourself. Slow down enough to ask, “What am I feeling right now?”
Name what’s true.
Don’t judge it. Just notice it. Allow it. If words are hard to find, use a feelings wheel to help you identify what’s really there.
Bring it to God.
Ask Him to search your heart (Psalm 139:23–24). Trust that He already knows, and loves, you right where you are. Talk to Him about it.
Choose your response.
Instead of shifting into autopilot or reacting out of habit, be intentional. How can you respond in a way that honors the Lord, your priorities, your relationships, and your body? Something like taking thoughts captive can be a helpful tool here.
Write it down.
Journaling can be a beautiful way to do this. Putting words on paper can be a great way to process more thoroughly.
A Blessing for You
May you slow down enough today to notice the sacred in the ordinary.
May you sense God’s gentle hand tuning your heart to His rhythm.
May you have the courage to name what’s true and the grace to stay curious about what He’s revealing.
And as you notice your own heart, may you find yourself more deeply aware of His – faithful, present, and fully knowing and loving you.
Amen.
soveryblessed.com (Article Sourced Website)
#Ministry #Noticing #Tuning #God #Life #Heart #People