Desperately seeking quiet
I live near a town which is home to a large university. It never ceases to amaze me when I go into a coffee shop, how many students are working on homework on their laptops. It’s often noisy. Sometimes there’s even live music, yet they tap away on their keyboards. Sometimes they even have ear buds in their ears too.
It’s not as if their isn’t a library or any place, quite frankly, that would be quieter than a noisy coffee shop. Can they really be learning anything?
I’ve witnessed my son attempting to do his homework in front of the television. It never works out very well and I always make him turn it off, much to his dismay.
It’s amazing how noisy our society can be. When I was a kid, there was children’s programming on Saturday mornings. That was pretty much it. We could catch a daily hour of Sesame Street, but the 24/7 extravaganza of kid’s shows was nonexistent.
We have raised a generation of kids who are literally uncomfortable with quiet and in doing so, many of us have become the same way ourselves. We have to have the radio or television on for background noise. If we go outside to rake leaves, we bring our music with us. If we cut the grass, we take our music with us.
It seems like we will do just about anything other than be alone in a quiet place.
Why is that? For one thing, we get bored very easily these days. Thanks to laptops and smartphones, we have endless entertainment. There’s always something funny on Youtube, Facebook or Instagram. Why should we ever be bored?
But, when we ask ourselves when we make time to talk to God, the response is often when we lie down at night, or when we are driving, or maybe when we are in the shower. Those are all fine times to talk to God. The Bible tells us to pray without ceasing.
However, when we lie down to go to sleep, they day is done. We can’t really ask for guidance on a day that has already passed, and if we’re honest, we will likely go to sleep before we get any of the answers we may be seeking.
When we are driving, we are still doing something. We are watching for other cars, or for our turn, or for a red light.
We often complain that we don’t hear from God. Could the reason be that we don’t stop and listen? I mean sit quietly somewhere with no music, television, cell phone, etc…, and actually talk to God and listen for His response.
Elijah was one of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament. He communicated with God regularly. In one instance, there was a powerful wind, but God was not in it. Then there was and earthquake, but God was not in it. Next, there was a fire, but God was not in the fire either. Finally, there was a gentle whisper and at last, Elijah heard God.
Perhaps, being quiet should be more active than we think. Perhaps if we were to seek more quiet, alone time with Him, where we just sit and listen, we could hear Him too.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂