Finding Silence
I am currently sitting in my house. Around me, I can hear the hum of a refrigerator, the whirring of the air conditioner, a video game in the background, and various other sounds. Just two of the four people who live here are awake currently, so it is still relatively quiet, and to be fair, our house isn’t a particularly loud house even when everyone is awake. And yet it can still be tricky to find moments of silence.
When I think of complete silence, I think about after a storm, when the power has gone out and the thunder and rain have passed and you can hear nothing. There is no whirring, there is no light pollution, and there are no devices. But for most of us, this kind of silence is a rare occurrence.
Our everyday lives are full of noise.
I am reminded of Elijah. He has had a major triumph in showing the people that God is God and Baal is not. And yet despite this triumph Elijah’s life is in mortal danger, and so, he runs away. He’s pretty tired and emotionally spent, and he’s ready to just be done living. And yet God sent an angel to tend to him in his distress. The angel brings him food and water and Elijah eats and then lays down to nap. But the angel returns and encourages him to eat and drink more so that he will be prepared for the journey ahead.
1 Kings 19:8-9 (CSB)
So he got up, ate, and drank. Then on the strength from that food, he walked forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mountain of God. He entered a cave there and spent the night. Suddenly, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
It seems possible that this is the same cave where Moses was tucked away so that God could pass by him without Moses seeing his face back in Exodus 33. And again God meets his prophet in this place. And he asks him the question - what are you doing here?
I imagine God’s question being gentle. Just as he already knew why Adam and Eve were hiding in the garden he knew why Elijah was on this mountain. But he wants to hear it from him. God isn’t angry with Elijah for running away or for coming to this mountain. God cares about him and genuinely wants Elijah to know he is deeply loved and that he is not alone.
In verse 10 Elijah responds to God’s question - “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of Armies, but the Israelites have abandoned your covenant, torn down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are looking for me to take my life.”
I find this next bit so intriguing. God and Elijah were speaking and yet in verse 11a God says to Elijah “Go out and stand on the mountain in the Lord’s presence.” Wasn’t he already in his presence? I’ve often thought Elijah went out right away and stood on the mountain while all of the elements were raging around him in cinematic fashion. And yet in reading this again this week, I think it maybe was different than what I’d thought before.
1 Kings 19:11b-13a (CSB)
At that moment, the Lord passed by. A great and mighty wind was tearing at the mountains and was shattering cliffs before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was a voice, a soft whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Suddenly, a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
It seems to me that Elijah actually remained in the cave until he recognized God’s presence. It almost seems like God is saying wait here until you know it is me calling to you. Then when you know it is me come and stand in my presence.
God wasn’t in the cliff-shattering winds, the earthquake, or the fire - though those things were awe-inspiring they weren’t where God’s presence was displayed. Instead, we actually see God show up in a moment of silence. Often translated as a soft whisper, or a still small voice, I think it is possible it could have been a pause in all the noise. In the stillness, God was there, gently inviting Elijah to meet him.
Elijah wraps his head in the mantle and makes his way to the mouth of the cave. And once he is there God again asks him “What are you doing here?” Elijah repeats the litany he had already spoken back in verse 10.
But this time God says it is time to go back, and God gives Elijah the next steps in his journey. I think meeting Elijah in the stillness required Elijah to pause and listen. He had to filter out all of the noise and distractions to get to the heart of the matter. God was with him. God loved him. God was going before him and making a way where there seemed there was no way. And though his life was in danger he was not forgotten or alone.
I think that we are also invited to find moments of silence - moments where we can set aside the noise and distractions of our own lives. Moments where we can practice listening for God’s voice. Moments where we can be reminded that God is with us. God loves us. God has gone before us and is making a way when there seems there is no way. We are never forgotten or alone.
~ Melissa