A Holy Silence

Wednesday afternoon, September 3, 2008 [sunny and 83 degrees],

What you are about to read is an excerpt from a "perspective" I wrote on Monday afternoon, May 8, 2000—8 years ago: As you know, God’s timing is perfect. He is always exactly on time—never late, never early—and today proved to be no exception. This morning, just before I celebrated the Eucharist, He directed me to this passage in the book of Habakkuk: "What profit is the idol when its maker has carved it, or an image, a teacher of falsehood? For its maker trusts in his own handiwork when he fashions speechless idols. Woe to him who says to a piece of wood, 'Awake!' To a dumb stone, 'Arise'! And that is your teacher? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all inside it. But the Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him (Habakkuk 2:18-20). There is no breath (life) in the idol, but the Lord is in His holy temple. Wow! The Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him! I have come to love that silence. There is something about it that really does attract me. I love being alone with Him and listening to Him. I really love hearing what He says to me! Brennan Manning calls it living in reckless abandon to Him. Anyway, I left my office with that passage burning at white heat in my heart; I had no idea what was about to take place. I was simply going to attend the funeral service of the daughter of woman who attends my church. Then it happened—celebration time! Talk about reckless abandon! Inspiring honesty, unbelievable transparency, and contagious enthusiasm were raising the rafters. I found myself clapping and weeping and rejoicing and thinking and praising and regretting, and yes, receiving! What an incredible experience! This was the miracle for me: In the midst of all that was happening, I found myself in that place of utter silence before Him, the place I have come to love. People were all around me, but I found myself abandoned to Him and He reminded me that I am His holy temple. There is life in me—His life! Hallelujah!
Thankfully, that Holy Silence is still attractive to me. I continue to love that Holy Silence, the kind of silence that allows for the hearing of the breath of God, the kind of silence that serves to remind me of the importance and benefit of living in wild abandon to Him. I am, especially, thankful that this Holy Silence can be experienced, even in the midst of the clamor and clutter of life, even unexpectedly. I must admit, however, that nothing compares to those times when I turn the rest of the world off and simply sit before Him—watching, waiting, and listening.
In my opinion, there are two very important pieces of the Christian life that many never appreciate: (1) solitude; and (2) the Eucharist. Let me encourage you to incorporate these into your life; you will be glad you did!