In 1 Kings 19, The Lord tells Elijah to “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

First came a great, powerful wind that tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks, but the Lord was not in the wind.  Then, an earthquake shook the ground but the Lord wasn’t in the earthquake either.  After the earthquake, there came a fire, but again the Lord was not in it.  After the fire, came a gentle whisper.   The gentle whisper was the Lord’s.  Elijah heard it and went and stood at the mouth of the cave.

Today’s world is a wilderness noisy with storms, battles, heartaches and troubles.  At times, the sound is deafening.  We can be so distracted we can’t hear anything else.  And when we close our eyes in our beds at night, our minds race and the noise keeps us awake.  We hear the roaring winds of change blowing through our lives, the rumbling, shattering earthquakes of relationships deteriorating and the crackling fires of trials that seem to burn on and on.  On our minds are our kids, our spouses, our parents, our jobs and our futures, and the guilt of the past.

During the day, we yearn for answers but, with our focus on the crises, it doesn’t seem that we can yell our questions loud enough for them to be heard over the noise.  Often we don’t  try.

Sound familiar?

The truth is we want to fix things ourselves. That’s what we do, right?  Especially us women. We want to make the troubles go away, make it all better for our families and friends.  Sometimes we ask, “God, why aren’t you helping me?  I have my hands full here as I fight these battles?!“

We keep on trying to wrestle down the storm, trying to muffle the noise.  There just has to be a better way.  Could it be that we’re missing something?  Why is it so hard?

James 4:2 says,”…Ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not”.

That’s it!  The Lord is there waiting to help us, but He’s probably not going to respond to our shouts or demands, but rather to our sincere, humble plea.  We have to earnestly seek our Savior.  Jeremiah 29:13 says, “And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.”

Sometimes we have to stop, still away from the chaos and find a quiet place. Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. –Max Ehrmann

We need to go and stand at the mouth of the cave like Elijah did.    There we can enter into the presence of Jehovah and find the answers, rest and peace that we need.  Our problems are only hard for us, not for Him!  Hopefully, we will learn to seek Him sooner than later.  Without the Lord’s help, it’s way harder than it has to be.  We have a loving Savior who so wants to help us.

The mistake we sometimes make is that we miss the whisper because we are busy screaming back at the noise,  trying to do it all on our own.

Have you ever heard that if you want to capture someone’s attention, whisper?  Well, that’s how it often is with our Lord.  While He’s definitely able to get our attention in the storms, earthquakes and fires of life, He often chooses to talk to us in a tender whisper.

Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still, and know that I am God:  I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.”  The Lord is all about having a relationship with us.  He loves us so much that He wants to spend time with us in the quiet place where we can enjoy His presence and He can enjoy being with us too without our being distracted.  He is a jealous God, He doesn’t want to compete for our attention.

If we’ll just turn away from our problems, go to the mouth of the cave, earnestly seek Him and listen, the next thing we hear might just be…  …   a whisper in the noise…

Dear Lord: Thank You for loving us so much and for waiting for us in the quiet places. Help us to remember to seek You first, rather than after we have tried everything else. The noises of our wildernesses are calmed in the peace that comes when we are in Your presence.  Please comfort those reading this who need a quiet and loving touch from You today. Amen

Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway. Proverbs 8:34

Thank you for reading and sharing my blogpost today. May you be blessed by the refuge and strength that the Lord provides in quiet moments spent with Him.