Tiny Whispers

Tags

Elijah, hear, Kings, listen, mountain, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, voice of God, whisper

Today we’re again reminded that God can be a surprise, appearing where and when we least expect a such a gift. (See 1 KGS 19:9A, 11-13A) The prophet Elijah is taking shelter on Horeb, “the mountain of God.” (Mountains often figure in these stories for some reason: their opportunity for solitude? the successful challenge of the climb? nearness to heaven? or…perhaps none of the above.) Elijah hears the voice of God saying, “Go outside and stand on the mountain before the Lord; the Lord will be passing by.” As we probably have heard, many loud and visually cataclysmic events followed then that he could not have missed: wind, earthquake, fire…but God was not in any of those happenings. It was “a tiny whispering sound” that Elijah heard and recognized as God’s voice.

How could he have heard God in that tiny moment? I think the only answer can be: practice. Elijah was one of the major prophets and obviously one who was practiced in listening. That was his job: being alert for God’s messages to the people. As such he was probably aware of any small shift in conditions inside and out. Maybe his emotions were stirred. Maybe he had a felt sense in his body…I don’t know.

What I do know and am more aware of as I reflect on this familiar text is that there’s a lot of noise in the world today – much of it negative and loud. It doesn’t feel to me that there is much mountain climbing to achieve solace and hear the voice of God. There are lots of zoom calls though and some are helpful. I meet with one group that I think might approximate Elijah’s ability to hear God in the midst of babble. Sometimes it’s hard not to try to fill the silence when no one is speaking. I’m learning, however, that this is the experience that I need to value the most because everyone is silently listening for the word of God to come through. And it is usually not a bombastic declaration. Most often the word is spoken in little more than a tiny whisper. And we are all trying to hear…Do you know what I mean?

A Tiny Whispering Sound

Tags

Elijah, God, hear, listen, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, whisper

Today we have what is probably the story of the greatest challenge a prophet ever had. It came to Elijah when things were looking quite bleak and he knew his days of serving God as prophet were likely at an end. It is a story of discernment, of knowing the voice of God when you hear it, and Elijah did not fail. I think it is, for us, a reminder that it isn’t always easy to hear God’s voice among all the competing messages from inside us and out, but is also an assurance that if we do our best, we will be rewarded every time. Read 1KGS 19 for the full story but here is the crux of the message, a message of mutual love, to be sure.

At the mountain of God, Horeb, Elijah came to a cave, where he took shelter. But the word of the Lord came to him, “Go outside and stand on the mountain before the Lord; the Lord will be passing by. A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountain and crushing rocks before the Lord — but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake — but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire — but the Lord was not in the fire. After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance to the cave. A voice said to him, “Elijah, why are you here?”

If God chooses to whisper to us by name today, “Why are you here?” may we each hear and have a ready answer.

Close Contact

Tags

conduct becoming, faithful servant, God, hug, Isaiah, listen, Lynn Bauman, mercy, misery, poverty, psalm 86, Sabbath, secret joy, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, whisper

Isaiah is still waxing eloquently about good living and today introduces the concept of Sabbath when moving from “conduct becoming” in relationships to other people to a consideration of duties toward God. (Is 58:9B-14) In our fast-paced and diverse society, there seems to be too much work to do to take a whole day each week for rest and attention to inner work – the traditional meaning of the word Sabbath, at least in the Judeo-Christian understanding. I found an interesting and comforting thought in an alternate translation of the psalm that followed Isaiah’s words, a more personalized possibility of a way to conceptualize a Sabbath. Here is how Psalm 86, named by Lynn Bauman God’s Secret Inner Comfort, speaks to God:

My God, stoop down to me, and putting close your ear, let me speak my poverty, my misery of life to you, and then, I beg you, whisper back your answer clear. I am your faithful servant, and I trust you, Lord, to keep a watchful eye upon my path of life. Treat me with greatest mercy and most tender care, for you, O God, are all I have; there is no one else but you to whom I speak throughout the day. So I lift my soul to you, that you would flood my heart with secret joy. For in your presence goodness flows as constant as a stream, forgiving me. This is the essence of your love for anyone who calls to you. O listen, Lord; I speak these inner words. (vs.1-6)

Having that kind of trusting relationship, I can imagine Sabbath being an every day event. That way of turning to God brings an immediate feeling of rest, like an enfolding hug, so could be instantaneous respite from the work of any day. I think I’ll try it once every little while today, just calling God to “bend an ear to me” that I might feel the closeness and then, the peace of resting in God.

Longing for the Lord

Tags

Elijah, encounters, Kings, listen, message, messages from God, psalm 27, seeking, speak, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, wait in stillness, whisper

The lyrics of a favorite wisdom school chant go like this: Speak through the earthquake, the wind and the fire…ohhh, still small voice of Love. The story on which it’s based is familiar (from 1 KGS 19: 9-16). It begins with a frequent introduction to a prophetic text: “The word of the Lord came to him…” with a specific message that would make almost anyone run to be at the promised site where “the Lord will be passing by.” The question engendered by that line is whether or not “almost anyone” would be able to perceive the presence of the Lord since it was not even close to the way anyone would expect. The Lord does not appear in any extraordinary way – strong wind, earthquake or fire – but rather in a ‘tiny whispering sound” – a breeze, most likely.

I think we often dismiss messages from God because they come wrapped in ordinary conversation or thoughts during the day and because we don’t consider ourselves able or worthy of receiving such communications from God. I remind myself of that some days when my blog posts turn out quite different from the way they began and surprise me with the content. It’s nothing earth–shattering but I believe that in some way God has more of a hand in the message than I expect. Other times I hear something in the text of the day’s reading that fairly shouts out something I have never noticed before or something that validates an experience I have just had in interactions with other people. Being in a situation like what is happening here in Maine where almost 100 people are gathered to “seek the Lord while He may be found” provides fertile soil for that kind of happening. I actually felt God’s question to Elijah this morning when God said, “Elijah, why are you here?” It stopped me cold until I realized that Elijah’s answer was mine as well. “I have been most zealous for the Lord,” he said. I found more confirmation from Psalm 27 that followed. “I long to see your face, O Lord!”

Elijah’s situation and mission were very different from and more difficult than mine but the prompt for a response was clear and did its work. I will go through the day reflecting on the question of why I’m here and what I will take away from the experience. But I will not seek clear and bombastic messages from God. I will just wait in stillness for something to arise and/or be attentive to the “chance” encounters of the day as the potential for seeing that God’s face is everywhere!