Eloquent Silence
I have this habit. Whenever I get in the car, I turn on the radio, or its already on when I start the engine. I would guess that 95% of the time, the radio is on, feeding me important news, relaxing classical music (to counteract my teenage daughters), or perhaps some jazz or rock to slightly (mind you) exceed the posted speed limit by. Schedule to keep, appointments to make, people to see, things to do. Do! Produce! Achieve! I am an American!
And then we have, well, um, the character and call of the Lord. He calls us to something different. Are we capable of slowing down, shutting up, and being quiet? In No Holds Barred, Mark Roberts offers us a taste of change.
We desperately need some quiet; a time to reflect. To be still before our Creator. To think, to feel, to heal. And perhaps, as Mark Roberts suggests, quiet may be a prerequisite to hearing God.
And if we think about it, some of life's most profound moments come out of silence. We all have experienced this. Perhaps the most recent vivid image of profound silence for me was the struggling silence of the final blessing of John Paul II, from his apartment window in the Vatican to the faithful below.
The sign of the cross, the struggling painful face. In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Without words. Amen.
I invite you; join me. Be still.
2 comments:
I remember hearing the term “keeping up with the Joneses” at a very young age and knowing exactly what it meant. I swore I would never succumb to needing to be like anyone else. I got married, had two kids, and got pulled into a river current of the Joneses. I want to swim to the bank and bask in the sun as the Joneses pass by. The rest of my family wants the raft and the paddles and the sunscreen and the laughter and the tension. At best, we can take an occasional less traveled stream. Then it’s back to the river.
Thanks Steve! You have reminded me of something else I need to teach my girls.
I like the comments about silence. In that light, I strongly suggest the book Leisure: The Basis of Culture by Josef Pieper. One of its main themes is Psalm 46 (45): Be still and know that I am God. Or rather in a re-translation with regard to the dynamics of German: Be at leisure and know that I am God. Strongly recommend the book. You will find a lot there that is enlightening as well as practicable and applicable to our daily lives.
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