By no means am I an expert in the area of stillness and silence in order to draw closer to Jesus and have a deeper relationship with the Lord. I believe we are talking about spiritual discipline and we certainly can't begin to dive fully into this topic in the space we have to work with in this blog. I would, however, like to challenge us all to consider the importance of standing, sitting, laying quietly before the all-powerful Lord - of being still and reverently honoring God. Lately I have been stirred more and more to be still with the desire to be filled with the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. Psalm 46:10 says, "Be still, and know that I am God!" Exodus 14:14 says, "The Lord Himself will fight for you. Just stay calm."
Perhaps you are feeling led to something or you feel you are in a battle right now and things have to get sorted out. You're a doer...you need to be busy planning for what is ahead, problem solving, strategic planning. BUT God is asking the most insane thing of all of you - stand still! He promised he would do the fighting.
Over the last year or so, a couple of godly women from the Sisters of Charity have been running a drop-in centre a few afternoons a week at our building on Waterloo Street. Sister Anita and Sister Celene came to us with extensive experience in running a drop-in centre for a number of years in Vancouver. Their desire is to work with vulnerable women, some caught in the sex trade. After some time, they asked what they could do for Outflow. I responded with, "please pray for us." I believe they have taken that request to heart and spent time with God in prayer for the ministry of Outflow and the people we are journeying with. Just knowing that people are spending time praying for Outflow is so good, but that's not the lesson I've learned through all this! It's the power of taking time to meditate on the word and spend time praying to Jesus that He would have mercy on us and touch our hearts in order to change our minds and bring our focus toward Him for His glory no matter is we are alone or in a room full of people. The battle belongs to the Lord.
When attempting to talk about silence, we often feel the impossibilities of this task. It's like trying to depict the invisible. Silence is difficult to describe through words. Trying to give a definition would be difficult. One of the Fathers from the early Christian centuries is a good example of this. It is said that one day Abba Theophilis, who was an Arch-Bishop, came to Cetus, a desert wasteland and spiritual paradise, where a great number of monks carried their unseen spiritual warfare. Arch Bishop Theophilis made his way to the cell of Abba Pamba, a man acclaimed and recognized for his humility and wisdom. The brethren that accompanied the Arch-Bishop asked Abba Pamba to say something to him so that he may be edified. Abba Pamba replied, "If he is not edified by my silence, he will not be edified by my speech." There is really little more that should be said. If people are not edified by our silence, they will not be edified by our words.
Thomas a Kempis said, "In silence and quietness, the devout soul makes progress and learns the hidden mysteries of the scriptures."
Present day spiritual writers commend silence as well. Richard Foster carries on the tradition, linking silence and solitude: "Without silence there is no solitude. Though silence sometimes involves the absence of speech, it always involves the act of listening. Simply to refrain from talking, without a heart of listening to God, is not silence."
In his book, The Sacred Way, Tony Evans points out that solitude and silence go back at least to Jesus, reminding us that in preparation for His ministry, Jesus spent forty days in the wilderness outside of Jerusalem, setting the example for the monks who would follow Him there three centuries later. Clearly in solitude, Jesus was presumably in silence as well, only talking to Abba Father and finally rebuffing Satan. Jesus made a habit of withdrawing "to the hills" or to a "lonely place" or to the "wilderness" or a "high mountain" and to the "Garden of Gethsemane." He went to those places before He chose His disciples, after he heard of his cousin John's beheading, after feeding the 5000, after healing a leper, before the transfiguration and, of course, to prepare for His passion.
Richard Foster says, "The seeking out of solitary places was a regular practice for Jesus. So it should be for us." Getting alone with the Father is especially important when it doesn't make sense. It is most important when you are thinking that you've "got this one."
When the Israelite people were fleeing Egypt after the 10 plagues, they were pursued by the Egyptians. Martin Luther says that they "were like a mouse in a trap or a partridge in a snare." Their choices were the desert, the sea, or the enemy. God kept telling them the most insane thing of all - stand still! He promised He would do the fighting. The marvelous story that follows is today called "the Crossing of the Red Sea."
Often it's our fears that hold us back from experiencing God, our control not allowing ourselves to go deeper in our journey with God. At least that's my problem.
Trust the Lord and Be Still (Exodus 14:13-14)
But Moses told the people, "Don't be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. The Lord Himself will fight for you. Just stay calm."
If you are hemmed in on every side and don't have a way out, it's time to watch the Lord go to work on your behalf. If you belong to Him in Christ Jesus, trust Him. Your dilemma may be financial. It may be in your business or with your supervisor. It might be with your health. It might be with your marriage or your children.
Here are a few applications:
1. Don't submit to fear. Fear will immobilize you, skew your thinking. Panic will cause you to do crazy things.
2. Trust the Lord. Trust His heart, His character. Entrust your obstacle to Him. he can handle it a whole lot better than you can anyway. Admit it.
3. Quit whining about yourself and listen to Him. The Lord has instructions for you in order for Him to make a way where there is none right now.
4. Obey without reservation. Don't question it. Don't wait on four hundred confirmations. Obey with abandonment. Your obedience opens channels of blessings from the Throne.
5. Thank Him for His faithfulness. Reflect on His work in your life. Tell your children about how God worked in your life. Tell your church. Tell your co-workers. Give Him the glory for the great things He has done in your life.
The Lord Himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.
--Jayme
--Jayme
