Pause For Stillness and Silence
Being still is a challenge for people who are constantly moving and doing. Look around you and listen to the sounds engulfing your eardrums. Not only is it hard to silence the noise and static around us, but it is also hard to be still within the sanctuaries of our minds. We choose to put on headphones and plug earbuds into our ears to provide bass-boosting soundtracks or commentaries to our days! Finding a place where noise and words do not drown out our thoughts has become almost impossible.
However, if you ever visit Helsinki, the capital of Finland, you can check out a unique attraction. Look up the Kamppi Chapel in the middle of a busy downtown area. While not a chapel in the traditional sense with religious services and singing, it is a sanctuary of silence in the hustle and bustle of a modern city. [1]
There are no big creaking doors or organs. None of the echoes of voices and footsteps that characterize a typical European cathedral are audible in this sacred space. It is open to everyone seeking a moment of silent prayer and contemplation. Kammpi Chapel is also known as a Church of Silence and is under the authority of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland.
Why would a city allocate precious land and resources to fund such a project? It was a very wise investment. It became a trendy place to visit, and over half a million people entered it within one year after it opened in 2012. There must be a need for silence and reflection, after all!
All those people may have visited this Church of Silence because of its location and design. Still, I believe that silence is such a scarce commodity today that those visitors were hungry to experience it, even for only ten minutes.
So, back to you. Take a moment right now and listen. What do you hear? Wait. Just do it momentarily and take inventory of the sounds and their many sources. Good. Now think about this: When was the last time you did not hear the hum of your air conditioner or heater? When did you last drive in your car without the radio playing?
When was your last walk without a headset in your ears, playing music, or listening to the latest podcast? Our world is filled with loud sounds that make silence challenging.
It is as if there is no place where you can escape from the noise of engines, machines, planes, and loud music. Like the folks in New York City, big city dwellers are famous for complaining about the urban jungle’s constant roar, day and night. We fill our ears with words and music, and it is often hard to think straight. It is difficult to hear ourselves think in the noise of modern life.
You may have heard someone quoting Proverbs 23:7, which states, “As a man thinks, so he is.” Ponder that for a moment, if you will. If our thinking determines our being, we better pay attention to our thinking! Yet, it is hard to think straight with all the noise and distractions in our world. We all need to find a refuge of stillness and silence to think our thoughts without the static noise of our world spilling its toxic waste into our ears.
“Thought will not work except in silence.” (Thomas Carlyle, British historian) [2]
The city fathers of Helsinki saw the benefits of providing their citizens with a refuge of silence to pause, to be still, and to clear their overloaded minds. Similarly, we must create sacred pauses and places in our busy lives to be still, listen, and hear God again.
“Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes.” (Psalms 37:7 NLT)
Here is a question to ponder:
Who is still enough to hear what silence has to say?
The ancient Jewish prophet Elijah traveled to Mount Horeb by foot into a desolate wilderness for forty days and forty nights. He was a fugitive from the government and overwhelmed by the stress of his work for God. He had recently crawled under a bush to die before the queen’s bounty hunters could catch up with him. After God sent an angel to refresh him, he walked to a distant cave in the mountains, where he made his lodgings for the night.
The voice of God came to him and asked why he was there. Elijah responded to God by discussing his dire situation and seemingly never-ending fugitive status. Here is how the conversation went:
“‘Go out and stand before me on the mountain,’ the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And a voice said, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’
He replied again, ‘I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.’
Then the Lord told him, ‘Go back the same way you came, and travel to the wilderness of Damascus. When you arrive there, anoint Hazael to be king of Aram. Then anoint Jehu grandson of Nimshi to be king of Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from the town of Abel-meholah to replace you as my prophet. Anyone who escapes from Hazael will be killed by Jehu, and those who escape Jehu will be killed by Elisha! Yet I will preserve 7,000 others in Israel who have never bowed down to Baal or kissed him!’” (I Kings 19:11-18 NLT)
This ancient story from the Bible provides some exciting things for us to learn about God and His interactions with humans. God knows that our lives are often tumultuous, noisy, and violent. So He played out a pantomime of all that drama in front of His prophet on the mountain. A windstorm, then an earthquake, and finally a fire represented the mayhem and powerfully scary stuff of our world. But Elijah did not discern the guidance and presence of God in any of those dramatic, violent events.
Then, surprisingly, came the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard that, he immediately recognized the difference and quickly responded by giving God his respectful attention. He stood there, his face wrapped in his cloak, ready to listen to his God.
I can only imagine being Elijah at that moment. Maybe all he could hear was the sound of his heartbeat and the blood coursing through his body. I suspect that he stood perfectly still, attentive not to miss a single word of God’s communication with him.
It was a fascinating exchange, and it is intriguing to analyze from a modern perspective. It was as if God had reset the conversation to the beginning of their interaction. God asked the same question he asked several moments before: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
Elijah answered with the same answer, but God responded with instructions for his prophet. He made it clear that Elijah had some things to care for on behalf of the Lord. There were some people to commission into leadership positions by the symbolic anointing of oil.
God had some work for Elijah to finish before he could retire from his complicated prophetic duties. Oh, and by the way, God said Elijah wasn’t alone in his devotion to God. There were another seven thousand faithful followers of Yahweh who did not bow their knees to idols!
So the question is simply this: What can we learn from this story?
Elijah was overwhelmed when all his best efforts resulted in him becoming a fugitive yet again. Despite literally calling fire from heaven, he was back to square one. That must have been very disappointing to him. He left his servant behind, and as he fled for his life, he could only hear the ominous threats of Queen Jezebel (see 1 Kings 18–19). It was hard for him to listen to the voice of God.
See, the counterfeit voices will always try to speak up and tell us what they want our destiny. Yet, it is up to us to get away long enough from the counterfeit voices in our lives to hear our Creator’s voice!
Back to the scene on Mount Horeb, Elijah traveled as far as he could to find a place to talk to God and hear his voice. It was not the drama and noise of the wind, fire, and earthquake that finally drew him from the cave. No. He waited patiently until the right moment, and the inviting sound of a gentle whisper pulled him out of his shelter and even deeper into the presence of God.
Elijah, with his head wrapped to cover his eyes and ears, clearly heard the voice of the Lord affirming his purpose. God mapped out his future assignments, and Elijah left reassured that he was not alone in his journey to please the Lord. Seven thousand faithful believers were still out there, not inclining their ears and bowing their knees to idols.
You may ask how this story can even begin to help you. First of all, I do not know which voices fill your ears daily. Regardless, the enemy wants to intimidate you with information that makes you feel like your life doesn’t matter. He often uses people to deliver his depressing messages to us. I have learned that these messages can overwhelm us and leave us void of hope.
Maybe that is not you today. You may not be feeling overwhelmed to the point of despair and hopelessness like Elijah did. Yet, I know that all of us have days where the harmful noise of this world becomes so loud that we cannot hear ourselves think. If we don’t take intentional steps to counteract that, we could spiral downward eventually.
I suggest you schedule regular sacred pauses of waiting in stillness and silence, just as Elijah did in his cave moments before God. This pause and waiting will help us discern the gentle whispers of a loving God, calling us deeper into His presence.
I believe that God is a good Father who has great things for us to do. He has people waiting for us to bless and encourage them as we go through this challenging world. I believe that in the stillness and silence, in this quiet waiting before the Lord, we will renew our strength for our earthly journey. I hope we will gain the clarity we need to see through our difficult life journey.
I think it is somewhat ironic, but once Elijah heard from God, he could see his next steps.
Jumping ahead in biblical history, the prophet Isaiah delivered a message we all need to hear again for our generation:
“This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: ‘Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength.’” (Isaiah 30:15 NLT)
See that. If you feel weak and overwhelmed, you should return to God and rest in Him. Being with God will give you quietness and divine confidence for whatever challenge may come your way!
Isaiah continued to tell the story of how God’s people would not be quiet and were still confident in Him. But three verses later, God was revealed as someone willing to wait patiently for His children to come to Him. He is willing to bless those waiting for his help when overwhelmed.
“So the Lord must wait for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for his help.” (Isaiah 30:18 NLT)
As we close out this chapter on the sacred pause of stillness and silence before the Lord, allow me to share some practical suggestions to help you regularly stop, look, and listen before you reset your course in life:
Be separate. That means getting away from others, even if it is just for a short season or for your lunch break. You will have to schedule it like any other meeting you schedule with others. Make sure your smartphone is placed out of sight. No phone calls, texting, etc.
Be still. That means that you will have to stop moving around. Get your body into a comfortable position and stay there.
Be silent. After asking God to be with you and direct you, stop talking (and even praying). Stop talking in your head. I know that this may be the hardest part for you. Our minds go a thousand miles a minute. Just try to think about nothing and see how long you can go without thinking about something else. If a thought surfaces, have a notebook and pen ready to write it down and return to your silent mode immediately.
Be patient. You are not in control. Don’t try to microwave the moment. Be in the moment and listen for the silent whisper of the Lord to surface in your heart.
Listen carefully to His gentle whisper and instructions for your life.
Once the Lord is done, thank Him for His love and move on to the rest of your day. Obey God’s instructions.
Note: Many people say that God doesn’t speak to them, but here is a question: What did they do with the last thing He told them to do? God speaks to us in scripture and gently whispers in moments we least expect. Be quick to listen and quick to obey His instructions.
I encourage you to listen to the Lord throughout your typical day. If you are His sheep, He wants to be your shepherd. You should know His voice above the noise of this crazy world (see John 10:1-21).
He is waiting for you to break away from everything else. He wants to show you His loving compassion. Be still. Be quiet. Wait for Him. He is ready to help you hear better and see better today. A divine substance is on the other side of this world’s noisy static.
Don’t forget the starting psalm for this chapter. It says that we are to stay still in the presence of the Lord and that we should wait for the Lord to act. Let’s not freak out over all the evil that surrounds us daily. [3]
He is a good God, and He will tell us where to go if we stop for Him, look for Him, and listen to Him!
[1] “Kamppi Chapel.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 8 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamppi_Chapel.
[2] Holiday, Ryan. Stillness Is the Key. Profile Books Ltd., 2020.
[3] See Psalm 37:7 (NIV).
Excerpted from:
Stop Look Listen (To Your Heart) (Study Guide Included)
Corrie ten Boom once said that if the devil can’t make you bad, he’ll make you busy. There is great truth in that. As you take a moment to look around, you will notice many people in that place of hurried pursuit. Sadly, they are so preoccupied that they don’t see all the goodness God has prepared for them.
Join me in this book as we learn to stop, look, and listen to our hearts. I believe that God is calling us from our hearts. He calls us to pause in at least seven sacred ways to secure the best possible outcomes in our lives. We can hear what is next and best for us as we talk to God. We can reset and refresh as we commit to pausing for 24 hours each week. As we regain the proper perspective, we can lean into stillness and quietness to hear the holy whispers of God. We will once again feel compassion for others in need. We will receive and release God’s soothing gift of forgiveness. Finally, we will learn to praise God as gratitude reigns in our hearts!
You, too, can stop, look, and listen to your heart!