Music is the silence between the notes. ~Claude Debussy
Writers connect the dots with a pencil of silence; words without white space will never be read.
Artists consider the “negative spaces.” The area around the important subject is painted with great care.
Musicians are as faithful in counting the rests and the pauses as they are in playing the notes.
The prophet Elijah stood on a mountain, discouraged and alone, and waited for God as the “sound of sheer silence” beat in his ears (1 Kings 19:12).
Are you waiting like Elijah to hear from God–in the spaces, in the rests, in the silence?
God’s Silence
I don’t remember how long it was, it seemed to last forever. As far as I could tell, God had checked out of my world.
My prayers fizzled and fell unheard to the ground, my Bible-reading was as refreshing as chalk. No hope, no encouragement, no sense of peace, I cried out each day, “God, I need feel your presence, to know you care, and answer prayer!” No reassurance came–no miraculous answer, no uplifting card arrived in the mail, my Bible refused to fall open to a verse meant just for me. Even God’s creation seemed indifferent.
Dusk is my favorite time to pray, when the boundary between earth and heaven seems thin. So I went for a walk one evening, certain I’d be given a sign–a shooting star, the benediction of a songbird, a rush of warmth for my long-chilled heart. By the end of the walk, my gut ached with sadness, “I matter so little to God, even a crumb of encouragement is too much to ask.”
As I neared my home, I was startled to hear a soft voice, singing a hymn I’d learned as a child. Be still my soul, the Lord is on thy side.
The voice, I discovered, was my own.
Silence Has Its Reason
The early church fathers taught what we forget to our sorrow: The silence of God has its reasons, and we will all feel the chill of its touch. The deepest desire of every human being is to draw near to God, and to believe his love without question. Nothing else will satisfy. But how can we know we hunger for God unless he withholds the food we like better?
After one line of that old hymn, I knew:
- I really do love God, not only what he gives me.
- I really do trust God, even when my unsteady mind forgets.
My wandering heart is learning faith, and silence is sometimes its tutor.
What have you learned in the silence of God?
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10 replies on “The Silence Of God Has Its Reasons”
This is my favorite post to date!
Yes. My own self referential spirit knows the silence well. I confess the the flow of communication is preferred by my tender human condition.
The silence is purposeful. The silence strangely fine tunes the spirit.
The dawn breaking the darkness with the flooding power of light and warmth is my most soul satisfying time. In the same way The Lord breaks His silence and floods my fragile heart .. yearning soul .. seeking spirit .. my limp broken life with His pouring Himself out to me .. Seeing .. Healing .. Guiding .. Restoring His beloved child as He wills.
Nothing The Lord allows is without purpose. If He allows it He will use it.
I like that, Ginny, “the silence fine tunes the spirit.” So true.
Janet, I pray you forgive me for the cheesy self-promotion, but it says in my own words what you so eloquently articulate here:
http://robslitbits.com/2013/01/27/in-the-s-p-a-c-e-s/
Beautiful, Robert. Thank you for sharing your gift.
Thanks for sharing, Janet. I loved what you had to say about God’s silence. I am learning that faith in God and trusting Him no matter what is what I need to hang onto.
You’re in his grip, Sylvie, safest place to be!
Thank you for this insight. I must learn to be silent. So hard for an E.
To be silent and to endure silence are both difficult but necessary, aren’t they? Blessings to you today, Cretia.
I’m currently learning and have been thinking of this as of late. Is my faith emotional? Does it respond simply to the thrill of His touch or is it steady and constant? Like so many other things in the kingdom it is a bit of a paradox. It is both. And the seasons in which the bellows of silence drown all else, may we learn to say, “it is well.” Thank you Janet, for the another timely reminder!
Rebecca, “bellows of silence drown all else”–you describe it well. There is something holy in the hush. Let’s keep learning this together!