He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.’
Psalms 46:10 NIVUK
Silence.
We are absolutely terrified of it, aren't we? So much so that we'll even fill the air with music, TV or nonsensical jibber-jabber.
My daughter found this out quite hilariously when she went to see a film in the cinema, liked it and bought it on DVD. She brought it home, put it on the TV and snuggled up under a blanket to watch it.
Around half an hour later, her mother came down the stairs and saw the movie was playing. The conversation went like this:
'What are you watching?'
'Shh, Mum! It's called 'The Quiet Place'.'
'Is there something wrong with the volume on the TV? It seems to be very low...'
'That's because it's called 'The Quiet Place'...'
The whole premise behind the scary movie 'The Quiet Place' is that a family live in a house with a homicidal alien that comes to kill them if they make too much noise - kind of like ET crossed with a school librarian. However, according to my daughter, the alien isn't so scary. What scared people more was the silence.
Because, for many people, silence is scary.
But not in the Bible. In the Bible, silence is a normal reaction in awe of God for who He is and what He does. We could think of it as being dumbstruck, of having no words to describe or explain Him:
The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.
Habakkuk 2:20 NIVUK
Be still before the Lord, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.’
Zechariah 2:13 NIVUK
It's also a reaction of surrender: of unconditional obedience to God, without debate or argument:
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
Isaiah 53:7 NIVUK
It is also a huge reaction of faith and trust in God, regardless of circumstances:
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: he will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.
Psalms 37:5-7 NIVUK
There are fewer psalms that teach this more plainly than Psalm 46. Read this psalm and take note of all the noisy words in it: roar, foam, quake, uproar, break, shatter. There is little doubt this is one of the loudest psalms in the Bible as both natural and military threats are described in lurid detail.
And yet this short psalm also has one of the quietest, and most determined, verses:
He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.’
Psalms 46:10 NIVUK
The Hebrew word translated 'be still' has several meanings: 'be quiet', 'stop moving', 'stop struggling', 'let go'. It means to simply and willingly give in and give over to God. And why should we do that? Because His purpose will prevail and He will be glorified, despite the noise and clamour around us.
There is another really striking example in the Exodus. The Israelites have fled Egypt, but Pharoah and his army are hot on their tail. The Israelites are being led by the pillar of cloud and fire to the shore of the Red Sea. Imagine the noises: the pop and crack and crackle of the pillar of fire; the whistling and whooshing of the wind in the pillar of cloud; the whip cracks and yelling of the chariot drivers; the neighing and thundering of horses' hooves; the blood-thirsty battle cries of the Egyptian soldiers; the screaming and wailing of the terrified Israelites. And then hear these words:
Moses answered the people, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.’
Exodus 14:13-14 NIVUK
What a word of encouragement! And what happened next? The Red Sea parted, the Israelites crossed over on dry land and the Egyptian army drowned.
But before God intervened to change their situation, Moses told the Israelites to be quiet, to be still, to be silent, to stop panicking, to stop fretting, to start trusting and to give God room to work.
To do so was a huge act of faith, given their situation. But that's exactly what silence is.
It is also an incredible act of assuredness and confidence. Look at this excerpt from Jesus' trial:
The chief priests accused him of many things. So again Pilate asked him, ‘Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.’ But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.
Mark 15:3-5 NIVUK
There was no justice at all in Jesus' trial. He was unjustly arrested on pent-up charges, declared guilty without evidence and crucified without the right to appeal. He had done absolutely nothing under Roman law to justify His sentence. They only crucified Him to pacify the Jews. And yet in a thoroughly astonishing turn of events, He does not respond to any of the accusations against Him, even though He was in the right.
It's breathtaking. Particularly now, in a context where we are so quick to demand our rights.
But why did He do it?
Because Jesus was acutely aware that this was His Father's plan:
Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, ‘My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.’
Matthew 26:39 NIVUK
His silence in the face of incomprehensible injustice, pain and suffering, His complete lack of argument or defence, is because He is utterly surrendered to His Father's plan.
In fact, the Bible goes further:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy that was set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:1-3 NIVUK
He endured the cross, scorning its shame, silent in the middle of deafening falsehood and corruption, because He could see beyond it to something much better.
And that's just it. Silence is a reaction of awe and dumbstruck worship. It's an act of faith and trust in God. It's an act of supreme confidence in Him and His plan, no matter what.
Silence is powerful. Silence is strong.
So why can't we be silent?
This is a huge question. Sometimes if you ask people what they do for their quiet time, they'll say they listen to worship, or a podcast, or watch a devotional video, or they'll sing a song. But what do all these things have in common?
Sound. They are not quiet. They are not silent.
For sure, they have their uses. They can help focus our mind on God, especially if we are transitioning from sleep or intense activity. But if they are the sum total of what happens in our quiet time then we are depriving ourselves of a deep spiritual blessing.
So why can't we do it? Why can't we be silent?
Because we are afraid of the voices in our own head. We are afraid of our own anxieties.
And that is a serious problem. Firstly, because we are told not to be anxious:
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Philippians 4:6 NIVUK
Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret – it leads only to evil.
Psalms 37:8 NIVUK
‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?
Matthew 6:25 NIVUK
But also because these worries can, and do, choke our spirituality and prevent the Word of God from being fruitful in us:
The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.
Matthew 13:22 NIVUK
So if our anxieties and worries are so bad, how do we get rid of them? Let me tell you, getting your life 'sorted out' until you have everything or have achieved everything you think you need will not solve them. Okay, some anxieties may leave, but others will replace them.
There is, however, a sure way to get rid of the anxiety brain lice as soon as they hatch:
Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.
Psalms 55:22 NIVUK
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
1 Peter 5:7 NIVUK
Do you know what the verb 'to cast' means? It doesn't mean to give your cares a role in a film or TV show.
It means 'to throw'. To throw like a pitcher in baseball or a bowler in cricket. To throw like a javelin or a hammer in athletics. There is nothing nice or polite or ceremonial about it. This is not a ritual. This is an essential.
Some of you won't like what I'm recommending here. It might sound a little edgy or dangerous. But believe me, it works.
If worries, cares and concerns have you in their tight grip and you can't face being silent before the Lord, then here's what I advise you to do: get alone in that solitary space and let rip. Unload. Pour your heart out before the Lord. Dispense with the niceties. Throw religious language away. Just let it all out. Vent, and keep venting, until you're done.
And if you don't have the words, remember this verse:
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.
Romans 8:26 NIVUK
Do you see it? Even the Holy Spirit Himself does not stand on ceremony!
Does this make you uncomfortable? Read the Psalms. Yes, some of them are beautiful examples of ancient Middle Eastern poetry. But others are visceral, packed with emotion and completely real. We would struggle if we had to sing hymns with some of those words. There are plenty of examples in the Psalms of the psalmist clearly venting before God, in ways that would make us thoroughly uncomfortable now:
Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
Psalms 10:1 NIVUK
Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence.
Psalms 73:13 NIVUK
These outbursts - which, by the way, if we were to believe they were anything but outbursts, would not line up theologically with the rest of Scripture which teaches that God is close to us in trouble and rewards righteousness - are there for a reason. Regardless of our upbringing, it is perfectly okay to come to God and cast our cares onto Him, even if we do so in a manner that some might struggle with, but on one condition. In pretty much every case, these outbursts lead the psalmist to come to an expression of faith and trust in God:
But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted; you consider their grief and take it in hand. The victims commit themselves to you; you are the helper of the fatherless.
Psalms 10:14 NIVUK
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever.
Psalms 73:26 NIVUK
And what is the key to that journey from anxiety and anguish to quiet, strong faith?
When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.
Psalms 73:16-17 NIVUK
It's being aware of the Presence of God. It's not being afraid to cast our burdens on to Him, however we do it. But why does it have that effect?
‘Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.’
Matthew 11:28-30 NIVUK
If the burden of our anxieties, stresses and strains are so great that we struggle to be silent before the Lord, then this is a burden that we are not designed to carry. This is a burden that ought to be cast upon the Lord for Him to bear with us and for us. He said His load is easy and His burden is light, but we will never feel it if we insist on carrying the ill-fitting burden of anxiety.
After a number of young people drowned in Scottish lochs during the particularly warm summer of 2021, a government safety agency put out some pretty surprising advice to prevent further deaths. They said that if you find yourself in trouble in deep water, the last thing you should do is struggle. If you do, you will sink and quite likely will drown. But if you stop fighting and stretch your arms and legs out like a starfish, you will float.
Many of us find ourselves in the deep waters of stress and the storms of life. If we keep fighting, we will drown. Maybe it's time to do the 'spiritual starfish': to cast our cares on the Lord, let Him carry them, and be silent before Him. Maybe then we will begin to float and keep our head above water.
Being silent before the Lord can be a catalyst to an enormous blessing. I have experienced this more times than I can remember. It's an expression of worship, faith and confidence, as well as submission. There is no other Christian experience that can replace it.
But to become silent, we may need to pass through the noise of unceremoniously casting our burdens before the Lord.
Is that a journey you are willing to take?
Questions:
How comfortable are you with silence in general, and in your personal time with God in particular? Do you readily embrace it or do you feel the need to fill it?
Have you ever thought of silence as an expression of worship, faith, confidence and surrender? How will this shape your quiet times from now on?
Is there anything in your life that prevents you from being silent? What do you think of the idea of casting this before the Lord first? Is this something you are willing to do?
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