This morning I’m sitting in my backyard watching doves and finches swoop into our bird feeders and dance across the small step, pecking at a free meal. Accented with the wind blowing in the trees is a small water feature nearby. I enjoy this respite from a hectic busy schedule. It’s a time for reflection, silence, and hearing God’s voice.
“Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don’t try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;
he’s the one who will keep you on track”
(Proverbs 3:5-6 The Message).
God is less interested in getting things done as He is in bringing the fullness of the Kingdom of God through us. He wants to partner with us in the adventurous exchange of His Spirit speaking and guiding us each day in our sphere of influence. This is often most deeply accomplished through silence. Three thoughts on silence:
It’s in silence that we calm our spirit enough to listen. It’s in listening that God speaks to our heart the precious things He cares about for our lives. Jeanne Guyon, a much sought after spiritual counselor to many, in her seventeenth century classic Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ, wrote, “Prayer is melting! Prayer is a dissolving and uplifting of the soul.” Listening for God’s voice in silence melts away our self-obsessed thoughts and quiets us enough to listen to God.
It’s in taking time to be silent that we refresh our spirit for a new day. Even Jesus needed to pull away to be alone with His Father. The disciples repeatedly recorded that Jesus would often withdraw to lonely quiet places (Matthew 4:1-11; 14:13, 23; 17:1-9; 26:36-46; Mark 1:35; 6:31; Luke 5:16; 6:12). Even on one occasion after ministering to the “whole town” of Capernaum, healing the sick and casting out demons into the evening, we read, “in the morning, having arisen a long time before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place, where He prayed” (Mark 1:32-35). Jesus needed the refreshment of a “solitary place” before He could move on.
Silence in prayer detaches us from the demands of our culture. “Nothing breaks the power of hurry in our lives like practicing solitude and silence. In the absence of urgent messages and ringing telephones…” (Jan Johnson, When the Soul Listens, page 36). Our heart needs detachment from the loud, urgent, demands of life. It’s what our culture thrives on. But God wants us to slow down and listen for His voice.
Find a quiet place and listen. Listen to the sounds of beauty all around you. The sounds of silence are often the atmosphere of God’s voice.
Pastor Steve
