God, do not keep silent. Do not be deaf, God; do not be quiet.

Psalm 83:1

Quiet is nice sometimes. You know how it feels when that car alarm won’t stop? And then it does - ahhh. Or how about when the restaurant is so loud you can’t enjoy conversation with a friend or family? And then you leave - whew. It’s like you can finally relax again. 

What about when it seems the Lord is silent? That’s not so nice. We have all been there. We have all prayed for something, and that thing was not getting any better. Or it turned out the opposite as you had hoped. Where was God in this? Was He silent? These are some tough feelings. The psalmist felt the same.  

One thing we can find comfort in is that we are not alone. In God’s sovereignty, He allowed the Bible to be filled with stories of people who faced difficult circumstances. Sometimes they made the right decisions, and sometimes they did not. And sometimes they felt that God was silent. So when we feel distant from God, we can be sure that we are not alone. And though He may seem silent, He is working all things out. In His time. In His way. 

It is times like these we need to be reminded once again of His faithfulness. When we feel alone or even lost in our circumstances, we can find hope in meditating and praying over Scripture. When we are not sure what to pray, we can pray His Word back to HIm. I have found a resource that has been helpful to me. Beth Moore’s book, Praying God’s Word, helps me do just that.  

In the same way the Spirit also helps us in our weakness, because we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings (Romans 8:26 CSB).

Thank you, Jesus, that You know what we need even when we do not and are always interceding on our behalf. 

Julie Smith

*Beth Moore, Praying God’s Word