Finding God in the Silence

I don't know about you, but it's so incredibly natural for me to pray that God will come along whenever He feels like it, wave His mighty hands, and fix everything that seems to be going awry. More often nowadays, my prayers have become routine and cadenced, not something that I do willingly throughout the day. It isn't a healthy place to be, and it pains me to say that it's the unfortunate truth.

I was sobered by a real conversation I had a few weeks ago with some friends who live in my residence hall. Needless to say, I was a sobbing mess. We had just got out of discussion group for our three-hour Thursday night Christian leadership class, and turning to my friend, my stoic expression shattered and the tears started to fall. I wasn't entirely sure why I was feeling the way I did. It seemed that I could no longer hear or remember God's voice anymore, as if my ears had slowly gone deaf over time and my memory of His love began to fade. However, I'm thankful for a community at my school that is so compassionate and eager to reach out to others around them who may be hurting or broken.

"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me--just as the Father knows me and I know the Father--and I lay down my life for the sheep." (John 10:14)

Christ is our shepherd. He is our caretaker, our caregiver, our safe refuge. Doesn't it blow your mind to even try to imagine how much His love for us even is? We live in a world that knows not one single ounce of unconditional love, and Jesus exemplifies that repeatedly in the Bible. I read in Donald Miller's Blue Like Jazz that "to be in a relationship with God is to be loved purely and furiously...and a person who thinks himself unlovable cannot be in a relationship with God because he can't accept who God is; a Being that is love." Wow. God and love go hand-in-hand.

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39)

As Paul, who was once Saul, writes this letter to us from his newfound knowledge in Christ, he makes it absolutely clear that there is nothing in the entirety of existence and beyond that has the power to unbind and untie God's love from His people. There is no amount of sin, disobedience, or even the enemy's foothold that can ever take you away from the Lord. Not even by your will would you be able to escape Him. That is incredibly comforting.

Today, I implore you to seek out the voice of God. Whether that's turning on worship music, finding a quiet place to read your Bible, getting together with a group of other believers, or just sitting and praying, it is so incredibly important to realize that you are not alone in this. Jesus walks with you, He walks beside you, He walks ahead of and behind you, and He is holding your hand every step of the way. Be confident in that, no matter what.

Blissful blessings,
Amy :)