Why
are we afraid of silence? I can hear the answer already: “I’m not afraid of
silence, I can be quiet if I wish to!” It’s a bit like the person who suggests
they smoke because they wish to; they can give it up at any time.
Silence is like
darkness. Few city dwellers know real blackness, there are always lights
somewhere; streetlights blast the darkness all night, even in our bedrooms. The
total absence of light is frightening and we tend to avoid it.
Yet if
darkness is to be feared, why do people shy away from the light? Is it simply
because our deeds are evil as Jesus stated? If we’re honest, it’s embarrassing
to have the light shine too deep into our lives, revealing what we hide from
the world. However inconvenient and distressing darkness may be, it is still a
useful hiding place.
But darkness
is compared to ignorance, misunderstanding, or loss; an inability to find our
way in the dim times of life. Light brings clarity, revealing a way out of the
difficulty. That’s why Jesus claimed to be the Light of the World: He
proclaimed the way from fear of death to meaning and purpose for life, beyond
the murky rote of simply producing replacement generations.
Similarly,
how often are people actually quiet, and experience silence? We can plug siren
sounds into our ears to block out discomforting thoughts. Perhaps a confusing
cacophony of sound is a consoling distraction from having to think about our accountability
to God and His world.
As the
holiday season begins, it’s a chance to “get away from it all.” Maybe a chance
to get away from the sounds that surround us and find some “peace and quiet”? It’s
in the quiet times the light can penetrate our lives to bring clarity, not fear;
honesty, not subterfuge; and peace in place of ignorance and confusion.
Here we have a chance to listen to God’s still, small voice,
usually drowned in the din of life, and check our alignment with His truth and
values, His answers to our deepest fears. Here we can find our ultimate need
fulfilled: peace with God, the grace of forgiveness through the death of Jesus
Christ.
Listen in the silence; it’s not to be feared, and the light
that can penetrate our souls is the greatest gift this world and heaven can ever
provide.
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