God in the Whisper

I’ve never been a very heavy sleeper, but when I had children any sleep I might have been getting disappeared. I like to say that once you become a mommy you never really sleep again. I think something clicks inside of you that allows you to get the rest you need (most of the time) while still having one ear open to hear anything from a cough in the night to the pitter patter of little feet coming down the stairs.

I’m sure it’s not that way for everyone. My husband, for example, sleeps perfectly well through everything from my daughter coming into our room in the night complaining about a nightmare to a hurricane-strength gale. For me, though, there is a little piece of me that is always aware of the sound in the night—the still whispers.

“The Lord said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.’ Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’” (1 Kings 19:11-13 NIV)

I’ve always found this story to be so interesting. In the midst of a really “down” moment for Elijah, God decides Elijah could use a little moral support. And what better support could there be, really, than a visit from God? God brought Elijah His presence, but first to show where He was NOT. He was not in the wind; he was not in the earthquake; he was not in the fire. Imagine how much of a contrast the gentle whisper, sometimes referred to as a “still small voice,” must have been in comparison to the previous manifestations.

God knew exactly what Elijah needed—a personal encounter with God. There was nothing at this time that was fundamentally wrong with Elijah’s theology, but there was something lacking in his experience. We all tend to look for God in dramatic expressions. Sometimes, though, we can only encounter God properly in less dramatic surroundings.

Chasing the Dream

We have a dog named Sammy. Sammy is 15 months old. Each morning when I wake up, the first thing I do is go look to see if Sammy is still there. You see, Sammy likes to dig. And when Sammy digs, he gets out from the yard and goes wandering in the neighborhood, looking for others to play with. Since Sammy is about 100 lbs, it isn’t difficult for Sammy to break out. Our yard looks like a war zone, with the fence patched and seamed up in various places around the perimeter. Still Sammy seeks to explore. So every morning when I rise and find him there on the porch, wiggling his tail at me happily, my silent prayer is, “Thank you Lord—he’s still here!”

Now on the occasion that Sammy does get out and I have to go looking for him, he usually isn’t far. All I have to do is find the nearest group of people, and he’ll be there. Sammy is a people dog. He loves making friends. And when Sammy sees me coming up to him, it never fails, he comes running to me, his tail wagging wildly, as if to say, “Cool! You’re here. Now you can play too!” And I open the car door and Sammy jumps right in.

What is it that makes Sammy desire to leave the comfort of his yard? Partly, I’m sure it’s hormonal—although we were certain last month’s trip to Dr. Mobley would have fixed that. But there is something about the prospect of the new day, a brand new world of adventure after a good night’s sleep, that brings on the wanderlust for Sammy. He’s got it all in our back yard. He’s got toys, food, water, bones secretly hidden, a big picture window to see into the house. But that’s not enough for Sammy. He has desires. He has dreams. And dreams deserved to be chased! So off he goes.

1 Kings 19 tells an awesome story about someone who was way off track, Elijah. He was being chased by a wicked queen who was trying to kill him, and though he was trying to serve the Lord, things just weren’t working out quite right. He was off course by about 200 miles. Discouraged and down on himself, the Bible tells us he sat under a tree and prayed that he might die. Instead the angel of the Lord came and fed him. He ate, and he was strengthened; however, he was still discouraged. So he fell asleep again. The angel came a second time and woke him up, telling him to eat and get up. This time, strengthened by the food, he got up and traveled another 40 miles to a cave in the middle of Mount Horab. It was here he had decided to spend the night, when the Lord called on him. Beginning in verse 9, the scripture says:

'And the word of the Lord came to him: "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
He replied, "I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too." The Lord said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
He replied, "I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too." The Lord said to him, "Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. . . I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and all whose mouths have not kissed him."' (I Kings 19:9-18 NIV)

Have you ever felt the Lord asking you, “What are you doing here?” Have you ever spewed out some long story about how nothing had been going your way and you were just doing what you thought gave you your best chance of survival? Some days that’s what life seems to boil down to: mere survival. That’s where Elijah was.

So whether you’re chasing some dream of adventure and excitement, like Sammy; or merely seeking not to get killed as you wander through the battlefield of your day, like Elijah; you may find yourself a bit off track some times. The fact is, we all do. The Lord will always come looking for you when you wander astray, just as I always do for Sammy. Just make sure you’re not too proud to jump in that car and go home!

PS: The next entry will discuss why the Lord was in the whisper, and not the earthquake or fire.