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Quiet
Quiet Everyone's Entitled to My Opinion . . . About Silence
Saturday, May 1, 2010 at 12:26AM I like my conveniences: electricity and all the things that come with it. Hot water, microwave, television, radio, iTunes, YouTube, Hulu, Bluetooth, you name it. Those of us who enjoy these privileges are the late-comers to history. For thousands of years the rhythm of life rose and fell with sunlight and stars. Candles were hand-made and expensive. Not even kings or queens would think of putting a hundred candles around a bath tub for a relaxing soak.
It’s not just the undulation of light: we’ve manufactured noise to a breathtaking level. One reason pipe organs and symphony orchestras were the rage in Bach and Mozart’s day was no one had ever heard such sound before--so full that patrons' hearts would burst at the fullness. Now, they all live inside my ear-buds.
Laptops, iPhones, iPads, and Satellite TV are just fine. But their use comes with a price. The price is silence, and in the silence God is speaking: “The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing." (Zepheniah 3: 17) Can you imagine? Peace, quietness, confidence, and the chance to hear God Himself singing over you. Have you ever heard His song?
I’m not anti-anything. I'm pro the-presence-of-God. In my opinion you should take out the ear buds today, and listen.
Reader Comments (7)
I grew up in a house that was always filled with music. It's a wonderful way to grow up, but at the same time it makes me sad that these sounds have become so commonplace in our lives. I would love to listen to a symphony orchestra like it was the most rare sound in the world.
A funny aside—on Saturdays when I was a kid, the four members of my family would take turns picking a record we would all listen to as we did chores, baked cookies, etc. My mom almost always chose silence when her turn came. I've never tied Zepheniah 3:17 to that, but it occurs to me that she loves to listen to God sing. Thanks for that image.
What a wonderful memory, Kristin. Music and silence: two ways He reveals Himself.
What a wonderful memory, Kristin. Music and silence: two ways He reveals Himself.
If we were in church, this is where I would shout "AMEN, Preach it brother!" (Kind of ironic considering it's a post about silence, I know!) But, I just can't say enough what an important message this is. When I came to yoga as a Christian, I realized how little I had been taught about abiding in silence. Now, I practice silence daily, and believe wholeheartedly that the world would be a different place if everyone did. So many people tell me that it's agitating to sit in silence and I always lovingly reply, "I think the silence just reveals the agitation that is already there - that you usually ignore." And then I encourage them to stick with it because ultimately the silence reveals the only real source of Peace. Here's to hearing His song! Thank you so much for this!
Thanks so much, Jennifer. The nice thing about the internet is you can shout all you want! :-)
So I followed this post from your post on Rachel's blog. I was intrigued because God has been teaching me SO MUCH about being silent before Him, and I've been trying to write a post about it (talking about being silent before the Lord is really difficult to capture in words). I am encouraged by your post, and think that as Christians, we need to be proactive about being still and silent before our God and King. Thank you for the post!!
First of all--welcome! You are always welcome here.
I have a friend who practiced just ten minutes of silence each day. Only ten minutes. Eventually he got to the point where he could even silence his thoughts. He built it into his life for two years, and later told me it had changed his life forever. Honestly, our loving Father just wants time with us alone, simply because he loves us.