In quietness and confidence shall be your
strength. (Isaiah 30:15)
Oftentimes in the Bible before a servant is used by God to do mighty works,
they go through a period of quietness. In 1 Kings 17:1-7, God commanded Elijah
to hide by Brook Cherith after he had proclaimed a
drought. While Elijah was there, he made use of the opportunity to quiet down
his heart. He did not talk to anyone, see anything, or hear any news since the
only thing that he would have seen was God’s daily providence of bread and meat.
It is because of this quietness in his environment that his heart was able to refocus
on God and be strengthened.
This
period of quietness strengthened Elijah as he later defeated eight hundred and
fifty prophets of Baal and Asherah on Mount Carmel.
He brought glory to God and restored the faith of the Israelites. One could say
that unless Elijah had spent this time in quietness to focus on God, he would
not have had the power to defeat the false prophets.
In
contrast, the Israelites were physically freed from the bondage of Egypt and
were in the wilderness, but their hearts were still in Egypt. In Exodus 17:1-7,
the Israelites complained to God over the lack of water and felt Egypt was
better. They could not see or appreciate God’s power and providence even though
they were also fed daily with manna. While Elijah was strengthened, the Israelites
died in the wilderness. The difference was in the quietness of the heart.
When we
encounter difficulties in our lives, God tells us that our strength is in
quietness. We can only quiet down our hearts when we focus on God in a quiet
environment. Disconnect from media, take a step back from our social circles;
wake up early in the morning to reflect on His words and promises, attend a
church seminar, or go to church earlier to pray in quietness. When our
environment is quiet, it is much easier to quiet our hearts as well. In this quietness
we can fully pursue and focus on God—then He will give us strength.
Reflection Questions
1. The
next time you come across difficulties, what will you do to quiet your heart?
2. God
blesses and provides for us daily, but when we are in trouble, do we suddenly
forget it all?
