Hearing His Voice #78

I cry to you, O God, but you don’t answer. I stand before you, but you don’t even look.

Job 30:20

Job begged for some kind of explanation, some answer, even just a hint. He cried out to God and longed for a response. He wanted truth from God, not platitudes from friends. But for a long, excruciating time, he heard nothing. The God who desires a relationship with His people, who has promised that His people will hear His voice, didn’t say a word. And Job was left to wonder.

We go through seasons of wondering too. We listen for God, and for painfully long times we don’t hear what He is saying. Sometimes we draw false conclusions about whether He really speaks or whether we are equipped to hear. We believe He wants a relationship with us, but we are missing the communication necessary to have one. Like Job, we cry out for more.

Sometimes God remains silent—not forever, but for seasons—and gives us no explanations, directions, or affirmations. Very often, the reason for His silence is a matter of trust. His silences reveal the condition of our hearts. Do we trust Him? When we feel as if we have to understand the details in order to believe a promise, or that we have to understand the reasons in order to follow an instruction, we are implying mistrust. We are saying that there might be details we don’t accept or reasons that would make obedience an option. If we trust God implicitly, the details and the reasons don’t matter. We assume they are valid because they’re of Him. And His silence reveals where we stand.

Even when God doesn’t give us explanations or details, He has accounted for them. We can accept them without knowing them. Why? Because we trust Him. Even when He is silent.

Lord, I refuse to let Your silences shake my faith. I don’t need to understand Your will in order to trust Your heart. I don’t need to know the details of how You will fulfill a promise in order to believe the promise. I trust You even when I don’t hear You.