The Sound of Silence

"He says to the snow, 'Fall on the earth' "

Job 37:6

What are your favorite sounds?   Your child's laughter?  The opening notes of your favorite song?  The sounds of your sweetie's keys in the door?

I love the call of my woodpecker when he comes to visit.  His chirping is unique, and I love when he lets me know he's in the apple tree if I choose to stop what I'm doing and come admire him.

I also love the sounds of geese honking for no reason.  I mean, I'm sure they have a reason, but I can't tell what it is.  A few years ago, I was with the Apple of my Eye in Colorado Springs, in January.  It was cold and snowy out, and we went for a walk past a mostly-frozen lake.  The geese were all way out in the middle, honking furiously, and it was an enjoyable, musical sound.  It sounded like when the symphony warms up before the concert. 

I got to hear that sound again today.  We are visiting family in northern Nevada for Christmas, and we went for a walk along the lake near their house.  There were fewer geese than that time in Colorado, but they still honked their wonderful, gentle, musical honks.

And I heard another one of my favorite sounds today.  The sound of snow.  Have you ever heard snow?  My kids never used to believe me that snow had a sound, but today they heard it.  You have to be quiet to hear snow.  I don't even know how to describe it.  And it's not the sound of the flakes landing.  I'm talking about the sound of snow falling.  Lovely.

Soft sounds are a reward.  They are the gift we are given for accomplishing silence.  

God is a reward for us, too.   God does not yell in order to be heard by us.  He might occasion something emotionally noisy in our lives to get our attention, but He does not raise His voice.  He speaks, and sometimes it's only a whisper.

God speaks constantly, but so eloquently that we cannot hear.  We do not know what to listen for.  It's a different language... it's not out loud... it's poetry and we are crippled.

Shhh..... Stop talking, stop moving, stop breathing for a minute, and if you can, stop thinking.

That last one's a hard one.  Even harder than the breathing, surprisingly...

Once you're as still as you can be, then listen.  This is where it becomes important to stop thinking.  Because usually, when we try to listen, the loudest thing we hear is our own thoughts.  But we need to get past those, noisy as they may be.

That's the only way to hear Him.

And He's worth the effort. 

~ "Fire and hail,

   snow and clouds;

Stormy wind,

    fulfilling His word" ~

Psalm 148:8

~