Silence
"Be still and know that I am God."That's not two requests; it's one. If we will be still, then we will know that He is God. Unfortunately, we are all too seldom still.
I have only recently begun to practice the discipline of silence. And I am still a novice. A music-lover, I have filled most of the moments that would be silent with melody. My 50 minutes to and from work were covered by radio noise. My precious time before the cacophany of students every weekday was covered by iPod noise. My solitude was always filled with sound.
No wonder we so seldom hear God. He only shouts when He has to, and that is not very often. Far more often He speaks in a quiet whisper. Still, He would be easy to hear if we only listened. God is not a bully. And God does not need a microphone.
So I am learning. Learning to turn the noise off. Learning to listen. Learning to be still.
I begin each morning in prayer. The prayer fills much of my time from rising to that sad, sad moment when the first student comes banging through my door. Earlier this week, I stopped my prayer, searching for what to say next, for what else to ask for. God asked me politely if I wouldn't mind being still for a bit, so that He could have a turn. I actually laughed at myself, driving to work, ashamed of my foolish tongue-wagging but so grateful for His understanding. And I listened.
He really has quite a lot to say.
posted by Thurman8er @ 9:44 AM
6 Comments:
It's tough for us teacher / preacher types to be silent. There is such a demand both at school and church for us to take the lead, to talk, to expound, and to not be silent.
Thanks for the reminder.
That is one of my favorite verses, and like you, I struggle with the silence. While driving, I have to have my KLOVE on. I am still striving to 'be still' and listen to God. When we be still, he can speak to us. In our too-busy society, we rarely, if ever, take the time to just listen to what God wants to tell us - which means He has to do something drastic in our lives to get our attention!
I like your solitude idea. I must try it myself.
When I am in the car alone, my favorite thing to do is just be quiet. When still working, I learned the drive to work was excellent prayer time, and my daily walks (when I am daily walking!) are too. I sometimes have that experience with prayer that you mention, and I imagine God asking me if I'm not through for a while! :) There is nothing better than God's own words when we are learning a discipline. But if you are a Max Lucado fan, he has two books that talk about listening in the quietness: A Gentle Thunder and When God Whispers Your Name.
(See previous comment from last post)...
Someone very wise once told me, "Sometimes we talk God to death!"
I can imagine God thinking, "ALRIGHT already!" when we stray from that silence that opens us up to His voice.
Sometimes silence can be deafening.
your last three posts have been spoken a timely word to me -- i'm listening.
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