When God Is Silent

When God Is Silent

By Rick Carrol

Silence can be a more powerful communicator than words ever can be. If the first time you say “I love you” to your partner and they respond with silence, you know you’re in trouble.

There is nothing more special than when we feel we have heard God’s voice to us through a message, a song, a scripture or a prayer time. But there are definitely seasons of life when it feels like God has gone silent. There was in fact a period of 400 years between when Malachi prophesied and the birth of Jesus and John the Baptist when God was totally silent.

Could you imagine living your entire life and never hearing the voice of God, yet still having faith to follow Him? That was the reality for the Jews living at the time Jesus walked the earth. It makes sense why they were so astonished when Jesus began to reveal truth to them in a way they were not used to. The people of faith had become accustomed to following God while He was silent. They read the scriptures, they meditated on them, and they spent time in prayer. On the day Jesus was at the temple being presented by his parents on his 8th day, Simeon the prophet and Ana were there, as they were every day, being described as faithful and righteous people. And yet they had never heard a new prophecy of God.

We can actually feel more present with God in seasons of silence, when we are forced to draw close to him, than when His voice is loud and clear.

James 4:8 ~ Draw close to God, and He will draw close to us.