Make room for the still, small voice.

“You can be saved by returning to me. You can have rest. You can be strong by being quiet and by trusting me. But you don’t want that.” Isaiah 30:15 God’s Word Translation

 I have no idea why so many of us are terrified of quiet.

 Our televisions blare … our cell phones noisily intrude on every facet of our lives … we shun resting like it will totally destroy our life’s plans. Life comes at us with decibels loud and urgency pushing constantly at every waking moment.

So we spurn God’s offer of rest and quiet trusting just as Israel did. “No we don’t want that,” we say. But beware. There are often things heard in the quiet that are never heard in the noise.

When the prophet Elijah desperately needed to hear from God (I Kings 19) he was told to go outside and wait for the message. As he stood outside a cave on the side of the mountain he was exposed to a blast of wind that literally tore rocks loose. Next came an earthquake that shook his world to its core. And finally a firestorm blotted out his horizon.

And he didn’t hear a thing from God.

We know that God has an ‘outside voice’ and it’s strong enough to strip bare the forests. (Psalm 29:9) He utters his voice and a vast multitude hurries to execute his words. (Joel 2:11) The dead will hear his voice and come to life again. (John 5:25)

However, the word that Elijah needed to hear came in a whisper. God’s ‘inside voice.’

This week, don’t make God shout. Carve some quiet, expectant time into every day. Shut your smart phone off. Turn off the background noise of the TV. Push appointments forward or backward until you have a niche to listen for God’s voice and instructions for your life. Refuse to march to anyone else’s drumbeat. You can control the volume knob.

You have a personal God who may just have some whispered words that you really need and really want to hear. Shhhh …