When God Seems Silent.

There are these challenges where one person must sit in a completely silent room for 24 hours. The walls are completely soundproof - the room is so quiet that people can hear themselves breathe. While some people make it through, a majority do not. The silence was enough to make them go crazy!

Sometimes, our walk with God can feel like this chamber of silence. We are in a situation that seems impossible (or just really unpleasant) to get through. We encountered months of grief and mental struggles. Sickness is overtaking families. Unemployment strikes again. In this time, you may even begin to ask yourself, “Does God actually hear my prayers?” or “If He has all of the power to fix my situation, why doesn’t He?”

If you’re walking through this today, I promise you are not alone. Let’s look at a person in Scripture who walked through suffering: Job. 

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If you’ve ever read the book of Job, you may have thought, “Yikes, I don’t want to live like this guy.” 

For background: Job was considered an overall righteous man. He was rich and lived a prosperous life… until he didn’t. His life took a 180º turn that led to immense suffering. He lost his animals, workers, and children. He also suffered from a physical sickness that withered away his earthly body. Yet even through all of this suffering, he did not turn his back on God. He continued to pursue Him. 

In other words, Job followed the Lord when there were no earthly benefits. 

I would imagine that Job felt like he was in a chamber of silence. Again, he lived a righteous life. The world told him he shouldn’t encounter hardship due to his righteousness. His closest friends and family (that were left) even encouraged him to turn his back on the Lord. His sickness made him unable to do regular, everyday things. Yikes!

The story of Job’s life poses a question for us: Would we still follow God if there were no more earthly benefits to it?

Seriously, ponder that for a minute. If you lived a life like Job or if God never “rescued” you from your situation, would you still serve Him joyfully & wholeheartedly? 

When the Lord asked me this, my immediate answer was, “Well, yes, Lord!” Yet, as I actually began to consider it, my “yes” was hesitant. I realized that I often cling to my comfortable lifestyle. I prefer the favor of the Lord paired with His miraculous breakthroughs. I love that I have a Savior who could do anything at any moment - whenever I ask. 

While all of this is true of the Lord, it misses the purpose of following Him. Instead, we should follow the Lord because of what He has already done for us. We choose to remember that God sent His one & only Son to die for us. Jesus went through a cruel, gruesome death to redeem you and me. He poured out His blood to wash our sins clean. He gave up the gold streets in heaven to walk on dirt - all to save us. 

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How does this help us today?

I mentioned earlier that following the Lord can sometimes seem like a chamber of silence. In these times, we can begin to ask, “Why won’t God answer my prayer?” or “If He has the power to save me from this situation, why doesn’t He?”

If you are in that situation today, I challenge you to remind yourself why you follow Him. Remind yourself of His death - of each miraculous piece of it that saved us. Remind yourself that He chose you before you were born. Remind yourself that He doesn’t owe you anything because He has already given you everything. We have eternal glory waiting for us because of what He has done!

Remembrance may not change your situation, but it will eventually change you. You’ll go from becoming someone struck by despair to someone confident in the Lord's eternal hope. You’ll appreciate each thing that He blesses you with (waking you up, providing food, making the beauty of creation) more than ever before. 

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PRACTICAL APPLICATION: 

1. To help remind yourself, set a sticky note in a daily visible place (mirror, dashboard, desk) that says, “Remember what He has done.” Each time you see the note, take 60 seconds to pause and genuinely thank Him. 

2. Each morning, take at least five minutes to thank Him. Do not ask for anything - just be grateful for everything. 

3. Set a reminder (or multiple) on your phone that says, “Remember what He has done.” Each time this goes off, take 60 seconds to pause and enter a time of thankfulness.

4. Each time you find yourself discouraged (whether this be once a day or ten times a day), stop what you’re doing, walk away, and begin to talk to the Lord. Intentional time changes us.