A Gentle Whisper

What does God want to say? And how does he want to say it? 

At times we can’t hear him. Despite our most desperate prayers, he stays silent. Isaiah 45:15 says “Surely you are a God who hides, the God and Savior of Israel."

Why does he hide at times? To do a deeper work in us. Yet too (and here is a counterintuitive work of God) he hides in order to SPEAK. To speak in a way that might not adhere to our most immediate prayer. Someone once said “If God is not answering your prayer. Ask for the wisdom to pray for something else. Something that God wants to say.”

What does God want to say? And how does he want to say it? Two important questions. 

Let’s start with the 1st question. What does God want to say? Well, what he wants to say is unique to me, unique to you. This is because God is very personal. He is a personal God at heart: Father, Son, Holy Spirit. One God, three unique persons. And he has made us in his image as persons. So whatever he wants to say is unique to us, to our lives, to our present situation, to our uniquely fashioned souls. As we draw near asking him what he wants to say, to us, he will begin to speak. Whatever he wants to say is a process. He does not overwhelm us with too many things. He knows we can’t handle all he has to say at once. That’s good news. So, whatever he has to say is personal, and it is little by little. It is a process.

Now to the 2nd question. How does God want to say what he wants to say? This is just as important as the first question. How does he want to speak? At least part of the answer is…gently. When the Holy Spirit speaks, he does so gently. This is God’s way. A bruised reed he will not break. (Isaiah 42:3) This is our gentle, tender-hearted God. This is also very good news. He is not trying to bang us over the head with truth. He wants to speak deeply and gently, to us and within us, as he speaks.

I have been reading 1 Kings 19. It is about Elijah the great prophet. In chapter 18 he stands against over 400 false prophets, just him and God. And he prevails. Strong man. Yet, in chapter 19 he is threatened by one evil woman, Jezebel. And the great prophet runs for his life. He falls into despair. 

So interesting…God first nourishes him with food, and lets him sleep. He takes care of the physical. We are wrong if we think that the physical is not part of the spiritual. God deals with both body and soul. He graciously cares for our bodies. He wants us to take care of our bodies. But he never stops there. After nourishing the prophet he tells him “Pay attention. Look. For I am about to meet with you.” So Elijah looks. What does he see?

First he sees a violent wind which breaks the rocks on the mountains and causes them to fall. But then the text says “But God was not in the violent wind”.

Then Elijah experiences a strong earthquake that shakes the earth under his feet. Again the text says, “But God was not in the earthquake.”

Then he sees fire sweep through the mountain canyons. Yet again, a third time, the text says, “But God was not in the fire.”

Then…then…then…after all this…then…Elijah hears a gentle whisper. Not just a whisper, but a gentle whisper. And then Elijah steps out to meet with the Lord. 

How I long for this in my own life. I feel the longing in my soul, even now, as I write these words. Yet, the gentle whisper is very difficult to hear if all I can hear is my demand for life to go on as usual. The thing is, life never goes on as usual. All of us are often times facing new normals which "shake us forward and shake us free” (Rich Mullins). 

Thankfully not always. I thank God for the seasons that are normal. And we can enjoy those times legitimately. But God, in his tender mercy, will not leave us there. If he did, we would never listen for the gentle whisper. To truly hear it, he must still us in his presence. This is HIS WORK. Perhaps that is the reason he allows the strong wind, the earthquake, and the fire (doesn’t life feel this way at times?) 

He wants our souls to be still before him…for our own good. He works for our souls to be still before him so we will listen for his gentle whisper, so we can hear his gentle whisper. 

I wish I could say I’m an expert at this, that I have this all figured out. I don’t. Even as I sit here in the quiet of my living room, I am aware of how I still, after 46 years of walking with the Lord, keep myself distracted. In my flesh, I’d rather life just go on as usual. 

BUT HERE IS THE HOPE. There is a power deeper than the flesh in me, the living person of the Holy Spirit…residing at the center of my soul. The PERSON of the Holy Spirit living in me and in you. So deep down, we truly want to hear him. We don’t want life to just go on as usual. We want to hear his gentle whisper. And we want to be transformed in the process…into his likeness…for his glory…and for the sake of others. The battle is getting in touch with our deepest desire. We can be sure that the desire is there just waiting to be tapped into and released.

How does this all work in a person's life? In my life? My most honest answer is: I really don’t know. But I know I want it. And so do you. God can work with that. All we need do is open our hearts to him and seek to listen. He can work with an open and listening heart.

May his voice speak deeply into your soul as you seek to hear his gentle whisper.

Grace upon Grace to you. The best is yet to come.