Every day we have an opportunity to have the Lord speak to us if we slow down and pause to listen for His voice.  In the Psalms, the writers used the phrase “selah” to act as a signal to the reader to pause and listen, to weigh the words that have been read, and to wonder in amazement at God. It is placed there to get your attention, to pull you aside from the text for a moment, as if to grab you gently by the shoulders and say, “Did you get that? Did you hear what I just said?” The writers don’t want you to miss the moment. It’s meant to be a moment in time to open your heart and hear God speak.   

For the book, I wanted a visual representation of that kind of moment. After all, Waiting on Wonders, is an entire book about listening for His voice in everyday moments and reflecting on what He might be saying. When I am willing to wait on the wonders that the Lord wants to reveal and I hear Him speak in them, in my imagination, it’s as if there’s a little spark in my spirit. That’s where the icon got its start.

I shared this idea with my dear friend and incredibly talented artist, Carrie Davis. In addition to painting the cover, she took the vision I had for the spark and brought it to life as an icon for the book.  In each devotional entry, the “selah spark” icon is tied to a phrase or thought or concept where, I believe, the Lord wants us to pause and think.

That little icon marks the moments where as “fellow Wait-ers” we can wait on the Lord and think and reflect on what He might be saying to us. In awe of His holiness and yet in wonder that He’d be so personal, “selah” reminds us that He is always speaking to us. Sometimes, we just have to slow down long enough to hear what He is saying.