The Power of Silence

 

As I sit here in the silence of the night, with only the whir of the air conditioner, and the occasional bug hitting the glass door, drawn by the light of the room, the clock ticking faintly in the background, I am reminded of the power of silence.

For the past hour or so, I have been sitting at the piano, letting my fingers glide over the keys, playing melodies that stir the emotions, feed the soul, lift my spirits, and release the creativity that lies down deep inside and is not often seen or felt due to the busyness of life.

As I played, I began to think of the power of silence. The power of the ‘pause’. Do you know what I mean? That little break in a piece of music where there is nothing but silence. The melody is flowing along, with its crescendos and decrescendos, moving gently back and forward with emotive chord progressions, speeding up an slowing down and then….. there is the pause.

There is a sudden break in the music. It is not the end of the song. It is just a pause. It hangs in the air, with a breath of anticipation, engaging its audience and giving them time to reflect on what they have just heard and eagerly wondering what is coming next. How long will the pause last? Will the melody change once it begins again?

And then, once again, the notes return and the melody picks up its former pace, maybe with a key change, or a rise in tempo, but the silence has been broken.

I love the pauses in a piece of music. Often, for the pianist, it simply gives them time to prepare for what is to come or gather their strength again after a difficult section of the song or get their pages in order. But what I love the most, is the power it holds. The hush. The breathless anticipation. The ability for the musician to use it to their advantage and engage the listener once again.

Is there anything quite so powerful as the hush that comes right before the thunder rolls and just after the lightning strikes? There is that anticipation. There is that wonder. How long will the silence last? How loud will the thunder be?

We have been having a lot of thunderstorms here in the Territory lately. With the wet season beginning to settle in, there is always a chance of a burst of lightning, a crash of thunder and a torrential downpour to send you running to get everything under cover.

There is power in silence.

And did you realise, that there is power in God’s silence too?

In the first part of Psalm 46:10, we read, Be still, and know that I am God:

There are many references in the Bible to being still. Standing still.

In the book of Exodus, we read of the Israelites miraculous crossing of the Red Sea.

Exodus 14:13 KJV - And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.

How difficult it must have been to stand still. To know that Pharaoh’s army was bearing down on them, and they were trapped. And yet the people were told to stand still. God was going to do something miraculous. Amazing. Astounding. He was doing a work that they could not even imagine!

Even Job was told to stand still.

Job 37:14 KJV - Hearken unto this, O Job: stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God.

Standing still is not something I do well. Being, doing, walking, running I can handle. But standing still when the storm rages around me or there is work to be done, to do lists to check off, is not an easy task.

I guess what I am trying to say is this. There is power in silence. There is power in the times that God chooses to be silent. He has not abandoned you. He is not ignoring you. He is working in the background. He is stretching your faith. He is helping you grow.

He is putting the finishing touches on the next part of the melody. He is working on the next page of your story. And he is longing to teach you patience and the need to trust him fully.  If we can just learn to stand still, we will see the salvation of the Lord.

Just as the Israelites had to trust God and watch as God parted the waters so they could walk across on dry land, so too should we trust God and stand still, waiting on him.

The silence is our time to pray. Our time to wholly depend on God, waiting eagerly to see what he is going to do in our lives. The silence gives us the time to review what he has taught us, what he may be trying to teach us at this very moment and to listen for his still small voice.

When the clamour of the world’s busyness becomes too loud, it’s hard to hear God speak. And so, sometimes he puts a pause in our song.

Sometimes the pause comes in the form of sickness and forced bedrest. Other times it’s a brief pause, like an extended stop at roadworks, when you’re in a hurry. Or maybe it’s the tiresome waiting you do in the doctor’s office. Whatever it is and wherever and whenever the pauses come, take note. There is power in the silence. There is strength in stillness.

At times it feels as though you have cried out to God only to be brought up short with silence. The answers fail to come, the doubts arise and the only thing you can do is to stand still. Be still. Wait on God.

Ask God to speak to you in the silence, listen for his voice. He may have chosen to be silent in order to get your attention. Maybe you’ve been coasting along and neglecting his Word or time spent in prayer. Make good use of the time to reflect on his Word and learn from it. Take the time to lift prayers of thankfulness to him. Praise him for who he is and what he’s done.

He has paused the melody for a reason. We may not understand the reasons or what he is trying to accomplish in our lives, but I do know that the pauses in our lives have purpose.

His silence never means that we are alone.

These God-sent pauses should cause us to stop and take spiritual inventory. They should cause us to look at our condition and see where we stand with God and whether we are walking in his will, obeying, trusting and faithfully serving him.

Just as the pause in a piece of music brings questions, so too do the pauses in our lives. Bring your questions to God. Ask him to show you where you’re straying off the path he has set before you. Ask him for wisdom. Then wait with eager anticipation, excited about what comes next, after the pause, when the melody begins again.

Be alert and listen for the pauses. Remember that God can show his power in the storm, the crash of the thunder and the flash of the lightning, but he also shows his Almighty power in the stillness. In the quietness. In the silence.  

He is working to build your confidence in him. He is teaching you to walk by faith. He is instilling hope inside of you and he is revealing his purpose.

Be still. Wait. Hope. Obey. Trust. And you will see the salvation of the Lord!

 

“All-loving Father, sometimes we have walked under starless skies that dripped darkness like drenching rain. We despaired of starshine or moonlight or sunrise. The sullen blackness gloomed above us as if it would last forever. And out of the dark there spoke no soothing voice to mend our broken hearts. We would gladly have welcomed some wild thunder peal to break the torturing stillness of that over-brooding night.

“But Thy winsome whisper of eternal love spoke more sweetly to our bruised and bleeding souls than any winds that breathe across Aeolian harps. It was Thy ’still small voice’ that spoke to us. We were listening and we heard. We looked and saw Thy face radiant with the light of love. And when we heard Thy voice and saw Thy face, new life came back to us as life comes back to withered blooms that drink the summer rain.”

 

 

 

 

 

Better Than I Deserve

 

When someone asks you how you're going, and things are going well, what is your default answer? Fine? Good? Okay? Great? I know that is often my reply.

I've been doing a lot of study and soul searching lately on the subject of gratitude, and its importance in our lives. True gratitude is something that we all have to work on. Given what God has done for us, the salvation He so freely offers, and the eternal security we can have, our lives should overflow with gratitude. We as Christians should be the most thankful people on earth!

But all too often, we choose to whine and not worship.

The Bible reminds us that everything we have comes from God 

James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. 

The title of this post is actually an answer to my question at the start. How are you going? I read of a man, whose default answer to this question was,

“Better than I deserve”. 

Gratitude is not just a reporter of details, but a revealer of the heart. If we got what we really deserved, we definitely wouldn't be 'fine'. But God, in is His great mercy, chooses to shower us with blessings, and so, we get 'better than we deserve' every day. 

God's grace is so abundant, that we often take things for granted. Little things, that if we were deprived of them, we'd be pretty miserable. There is so much to be thankful for, and yet, we neglect to give thanks to God. 

There are so many passages of scripture related to giving thanks to God. The Psalms are full of praise to God. In 1 Chronicles, David instructs the Levites to stand every morning and evening to thank and praise the Lord. In the book of Daniel, we see him kneeling before God three times a day, giving thanks to God. The Bible is full of men and women worshipping and praising God and giving thanks. 

I want my life to be a life of gratitude to God. A life of thankfulness. I have been convicted of my lack of thankfulness and my complaining spirit. When we sit down and seriously begin to count all the blessings in our lives, we find that there are so many and they are so numerous, that we are unable to write them all down, because our list would be never-ending. And not just physical blessings either. We have so many spiritual blessings as well. God's holiness. God's faithfulness. God's mercy. God's nearness. And the list goes on. And on. And on. 

And so, the challenge for us all, is to become more grateful. To worship and not whine. To make our default answer, “Better than I deserve”. God doesn't owe us anything, yet He chose to come down to earth and humble Himself and give His life so that we could experience life in Heaven with Him forever.

If we have salvation, we most definitely have better than we deserve. If we can think of nothing else to be thankful for, we have the greatest gift of all. Eternal security and a God who will never leave us or forsake us.

If we are alive and breathing, we have better than we deserve. If we have ears to hear, eyes to see, legs to walk, a mouth to speak, we have better than we deserve. If we have food on the table and a roof over our head, we have better than we deserve. Need I go on? 

Don’t be content to only recognize what you are grateful for but strive to speak out and express your appreciation to God and others. It’s not enough to be thankful in your heart, you need to speak it out, sing it out, shout it out! Let the world know about God’s goodness to you.

Psalm 145:3, 5, 21 KJV - Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable. ... I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works. ... My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD: and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever. 

Psalm 135:3 KJV - Praise the LORD; for the LORD is good: sing praises unto his name; for it is pleasant.

Remember that each time you wake with the light of the morning, it is a blessing and a gift from God and you’re getting better than you deserve!

Express your thankfulness to God often and share with others the blessings you receive.

When we get to Heaven, we’ll be singing God’s praises for ever. For all eternity. So, the praises you sing here on earth are just a dress rehearsal for Heaven. 

Start practicing now!

 

Revelation 4:8 KJV - And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

Revelation 5:9 KJV - And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s not the rest of your story

 

Are you struggling today with the way your story is playing out? Are you discouraged because the script of your life is not at all what you had planned? Are you frustrated with the season of life you currently find yourself in?

Maybe you are facing illness. Or maybe it’s the loss of a friendship. Or a very busy season that just won’t let up and let you catch your breath. Are you riding a wave of emotions that range from sadness to hurt, to anger, to bitterness?

Can I encourage you today, that although today may be part of your story, it’s not the REST of your story.

Although what you’re facing today seems hard and you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel, although you despair of change ever happening, God has a plan for you, and it is good.

Jeremiah 29:11 KJV - For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

Just because the story we find ourselves in right now is not to our liking, doesn’t mean that it won’t change, and that God is not working behind the scenes.

God loves to work with broken things and the healing of broken people and broken lives are one of the ways God chooses to show us his glory and his greatness.

He loves to rewrite the script of our lives, and weave into it his love, his mercy, his faithfulness, so we will see him for who he is and worship and praise him, allowing him to have first place in our lives, realising that but for him, we are nothing and he alone can take our stories and make something beautiful of them.

God is the God of the impossible and no matter where we find ourselves, or what circumstance we are in the midst of, God knew about it from the beginning, and he is able to work it for our good if we are faithful and obedient to him.

Our stories are often messy and unpredictable, full of ups and downs, twists and turns, but don’t you think that the God who formed the universe with his voice, the God who catches our tears in a bottle, the God who knows about each sparrow that falls to the ground, don’t you think he can handle your life’s story? Don’t you think that he can change your story around and give you a different ending than you foresaw.

He is able to do amazing things and he can write into the script of your life, grace abounding, love overflowing, mercy unfathomable and unspeakable peace.

Ephesians 3:20-21a KJV - Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory….

Trust God with your story. Let go of the pen. Don’t try and change it or rewrite it. Submit the writing to him and let him add in the plot twists and the joy and laughter, the hurt and tears.

God, the author of the precious Word of God we so casually hold in our hands, the Book of all Books, the greatest piece of literature ever written, inspired by God Almighty, penned by men of God, passed down through the ages, never able to be destroyed, the most beautiful love letter ever written, God can be trusted to write your story. He knows what he’s doing.

Stop fighting with the pen, stop tearing the pages out, stop adding pages in, stop changing the fonts, stop messing with the pauses, the commas, the chapter divisions.

Let God take full control and rest assured that your story is in his hands. God is not finished.

 

Today is part of your story, but it is NOT the rest of your story!

 

 

Fill your Mouth with Laughter, 

Sing and Rejoice!

 

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been studying for our Ladies Bible Study, on the subject of gratitude. I have been convicted once again of my lack of thankfulness and regular verbal praise of our Great God.

Take a look at this passage in Psalms.

Psalm 126:1-6

When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.

Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them.

The LORD hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.

Turn again our captivity, O LORD, as the streams in the south.

They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.

He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

I love the reminders in Scripture that encourage us to give thanks to the Lord and to remember all that He has done for us. Unfortunately, we need to be reminded. It’s sad that we don’t naturally give thanks and praise to God. It’s something we have to learn. Like learning to be content, we have to learn to praise.

In this Psalm, we see the rejoicing of God’s people. When God brought them out of captivity, and back to Jerusalem, it was like a dream to them. A beautiful, wonderful, unbelievable, amazing dream. It seemed too good to be true. But it was true! And it was cause for rejoicing.

The hearts of God’s people were overflowing with joy and their mouths were filled with laughter and singing. The heathen even looked on in disbelief, marvelling at God’s goodness to his people.

What I love about this passage is the fact that the people gave praise to God. They realised that it was his doing, and he alone deserved their praise, their worship, their singing and laughter.

How often do we neglect to give thanks to God for his goodness to us?

There are some times in our lives that we feel alone, lost and helpless. But those times should draw us closer to the Lord and should cause us to remember all the things God has done for us, and we should be glad. Our mouths should be filled with laughter, our tongues with singing and we should rejoice!

If we take time daily in praising the Lord and giving thanks to Him, it will change our view and our attitude. If we make time to remember all the good and all the blessings the Lord showers upon us, it will encourage our hearts and we will gain the strength to carry on.

Gratitude doesn’t come naturally to us, just as contentment does not. It is something we have to learn. We have to cultivate it. Feed it. Grow it.

As I’ve studied these past weeks, I have made it a point, to take some time each morning, before I get busy with my day, to sit and write down a few things I am thankful for, from the day before, or any particular instance that comes to mind.

And do you know what I’ve found? I have experienced a happier outlook. It is amazing what some gratefulness and a thankful spirit does for your mood. I have felt more content, less stressed, and more able to deal with the challenges each day brings, and I have a sense of peace and joy in my soul.

The days have not been easier, in fact, I’ve worked so much in the past few weeks, that I marvel at the end of each day at the strength God has given me to perform my tasks and still stand upright!

But, although the days have been long, God’s peace and joy has pervaded my whole being and washed over me, enclosing me in a tender embrace, like a hot cup of tea and a warm blanket on a cold day, rising up inside of me in a way I had not experienced before.

It’s all a matter of perspective. When you choose to view everything through the eyes of thanksgiving and praise, the whole world looks different.

Often, I look at my circumstances from a cup half empty perspective. But I am learning, and believe me, it’s a process, I am learning to turn things on their head, and try and see something to be thankful for, in every situation.

A few years back, when I was going through a very difficult time in my life, I wrote this verse up on a card to hang above my desk, and I read it often.

Psalm 77:11-12 I will remember the works of the LORD: surely I will remember thy wonders of old. I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of thy doings.

The Psalmist chose to remember. We need to remind ourselves of the victories in our lives, of God’s goodness to us, of his protecting hand upon us, of the blessings he has given us.

We need also to meditate on these things. Not just remember briefly, but think on them deeply, thoughtfully, carefully.

And lastly, the Psalmist says he will talk of these things. I will remember. I will meditate. I will talk.

It’s not only important to remember, and to meditate, but also to talk. That means sharing with others what God has done for you.

God’s exiled people, brought back from captivity, chose to laugh and sing, and cry and rejoice. They were verbal in their praise of God.

They shared what God had done for them, so much so, that the heathen marvelled.

When a newcomer sets foot in your church, do they see a joyful spirit amongst God’s people, laughing, singing, rejoicing, crying and giving praise to God? Is there something inside them that longs for what you have? Do they sense a difference?

Or are they met with long faces, hard luck stories, ungodly conversation, misery and despair?

We, as believers, need to be very conscious of how the world sees us. We need to continually remind ourselves of God’s goodness, and then we need to make sure we share it. We need to shout it from the rooftops, proclaim it from the mountaintops, show the world how great our God is.

Look for God in every situation. Look for things to praise God for, in all circumstances, good or bad. And then talk of those things. Share them with others.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Choose gratefulness over grumbling. Write a list. Pray prayers of thanksgiving regularly and have times when you don’t ask for anything, only give thanks and praise to the God who saved your soul and showers you with blessings and love and mercy.

We’ve all heard of and participated in media fasts, but how about a discontentment and grumbling fast? No whinging, no complaining, only praise and thanksgiving!

I dare you to try it for a day! Don’t give up when you fail, because you will. Just get back up, purpose in your heart to be thankful, ask God’s forgiveness and move forward.

God wants to grow a thankful spirit in every one of us. But it takes a choice on our part. Choose to let gratitude be your default. Let God work and praise him not only in the sunshine, but also in the storm.

Psalm 118:24 This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.