Roars & A Whisper
For this week’s Reach, let’s start at the beginning, when the rain was given direction for the first time and the springs were tucked away. In Genesis chapter 1, verse 11 it talks about when God created the vegetation on this earth. And then 13 verses later He creates the livestock that will consume that vegetation.
God was providing what would be needed...before it was needed. He created the sky before he breathed life into the birds of the air. Not a single fish flopped until the ocean was filled. What does this tell us about our God?
He is at work on our behalf. He goes before us and then He sent His son to walk beside us. And when Jesus came he made it very clear how we are to look at God. He is our Father, He is our protector, He is our provider.
Satan hates this. So he prowls the earth like a roaring lion as described in 1 Peter 5:8. This verse is interesting because it points out two things about Satan:
He is stealthy in his approach. He watches and learns what can be seen at a surface level. And like a patient cat, once our necks are exposed (whether in prayer or in despair) he attacks with the goal to devour his prey.
He is loud. He roars. We are not necessarily talking about a sound...although sometimes it can be. When a lion roars it causes you to shudder because it is a deep bellow you can hear and feel. It startles you and can cause so much commotion to well up in your mind. It is nearly impossible to think in a roar.
Let's pause for a moment here.
Do you hear a roar in your life?
Is it loud?
Is it subtle?
Is it distracting?
When you read "roar" it makes sense that you would assume big, loud, obviously dangerous signs...but when the enemy of our Lord roars...he rarely does so in the way we would quickly or easily recognize.
For me personally, the roar looks more like falling into the practice of “leaning on my own understanding”. It’s subtle but it’s poison in the water. My own understanding either immediately or eventually leads to anxiety, pain, misunderstandings, confusion and reaching for distractions to pacify a hunger.
Proverbs 3:5 says: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.
Your own understanding can leave you in a vulnerable position for the enemy. He wants you separated from the Shepherd. He knows the power of the Shepherd. He also knows that if he can be “louder” than the shepherd, perhaps we will stray from the herd on our own.
God does not need to be loud to seem powerful nor does He need to prove Himself worthy of our attention. He wants to know who will choose to be still and listen for His whisper in a world filled with roars. It’s a choice. And this response is not missed.
2 Chronicles 16:9 says: For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward Him.
What does strong support from God look like?
An ark filled with animals
Genesis 7:1A parted sea
Exodus 14:21A man unharmed while in a den filled with hungry lions
Daniel 6:22A giant falling to his death from a single stone thrown by boy
1 Samuel 17:1A woman approaching a King to save her people
Esther 8:1
Isaiah 40:31 says: But they who wait for/ who trust in/ who hope in the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
Isaiah, a prophet, wrote these words. A prophet during very dark times. Very uncertain times. He clung to what was certain. Don’t you know the roars were loud in his life. But that still small voice, that whisper...he chose time and time again. And it’s not because of Isaiah that we still read the words he wrote, he was a cracked vessel God used to flow living waters through. Isaiah knew he was only a man but he was a man choosing to live each day from God.
How would your life look if you embraced this? If you quieted yourself long enough to hear the whisper even when the roar is rattling you to your core.
Satan roars. God whispers.
Instead of listening to the roars...
how about we begin practicing listening for His whisper.
In closing I would love to read some scripture from 1 Kings. Here we find Elijah, a feared prophet of the Lord, running for his life from the evil Queen Jezebel. Elijah flees to the wilderness where God cares for Elijah, but also makes himself known in a powerful, unexpected way.
There he came to a cave and lodged in it. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.”
And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper. And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.
Elijah had many roars vying for his attention…but despite the deafening bellows, he chose to heed the call from a whisper.
While God could shake the earth with His voice, He chooses to speak like a good shepherd to His flock, like a good father to His children.
Do you hear a roar in your life?
Is it loud?
Is it subtle?
Is it distracting?
My friend it is time to quiet your soul, tune out the roars… climb a mountain like a Elijah if you must…and then listen for the whisper from your good Shepherd…listen for the still small voice of your Heavenly Father.
Photos by Steve Taylor | Background music in audio by Nathan Nockels
