Jul
7
2020
The Whisper
Posted in Faith 4 Comments
It was a game that was played quite often.
It always ended in giggles.
It always bordered on the absurd.
That was part of the fun.
It began with a story.
The first person whispered the story to the person next to them.
That person told the story to someone else, who told the story to someone else.
The story was repeated until everyone heard.
Or did they?
You would think that everyone heard the story.
How difficult is it to repeat something you just heard?
How difficult is it to tell the story correctly to the next person?
Whisper Down The Lane proved to be quite difficult.
From the first person to the second person, the story was altered.
It was not altered intentionally.
It was altered because of the way it was heard; words got lost in translation.
Maybe it was the way the story was told in the first place.
Maybe it was the pronunciation of a word that made it a bit ambiguous.
Maybe the whispering actually tickled the ear of the listener.
A giggling listener will not hear the story correctly; I know that from experience.
Whispering is tricky business.
Words get distorted.
Things are not heard correctly.
Stories are not heard completely.
We have to fill in the blanks.
We have to say what we think we heard.
We have to tell the story to the next person.
We think it is close enough.
Only the last person will show us how very wrong we were.
The last person will say the story as they heard it.
Often, it is so far removed from the original story.
That is when the giggles begin.
Growing up, many of us were told that it is impolite to whisper.
Someone always feels left out when two other people are talking behind their hands.
Whispering makes one wonder if the story being told is about them.
Whispering is a ploy used to make people wonder about the content of the whisper.
Love songs talk about whispering sweet nothings into a loved one’s ear.
Young children whisper so loudly, you can hear them across the room.
An assistant may whisper the name of a person to their boss as they stand in a receiving line.
A mother may whisper directions into her child’s ear, when talking loudly would be rude.
A gentle breeze whispers through the trees.
A melody whispers on the night air.
Parents whisper to their newborn baby, making sure their voices are not too loud.
A person practicing their lines for a play may whisper them backstage before they go on.
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, torn 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, torn 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.” (1 Kings 19:1-14)
God did powerful things through His prophet, Elijah.
However, Elijah got weary.
Elijah got scared.
Elijah was not seeing things clearly.
He felt as if he was the only one who cared.
He felt as if he was the only one who served God.
He was depressed.
God was gentle in His dealings with Elijah.
Elijah thought he would find God in the wind.
Elijah thought he would find God in the earthquake.
Elijah thought he would find God in the fire.
God was not to be found in the ostentatious examples of His power.
Instead, God revealed Himself to Elijah in a whisper.
Unlike, Whisper Down the Lane, there was no mistaking what God said to Elijah.
In a gentle whisper, God made himself known.
Nothing was lost in translation.
Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him. (1 Kings 19:18)
God, very gently, and very tenderly, told Elijah that he was not alone.
Elijah was tired and weary.
Elijah had given up.
Yet in the gentle, quiet whisper of God, there is power.
We are so used to noise.
We are so used to hearing people yell at each other.
We are so accustomed to people shouting over each other.
No one is listening; words are getting distorted.
It is time for the whispering to begin.
It is time for the volume to be turned down.
Blaring noise makes the voices indistinguishable after a while.
Everyone sounds the same: loud, angry, and hopeless.
God’s whisper was powerful to Elijah.
Elijah pulled his cloak over his face because he knew that God was in the Whisper.
God is still in the Whisper.
We have to turn down the volume of our life in order to hear Him.
Whisper Down The Lane may produce giggles, but it is not conducive to expounding truth.
Too many people are talking.
Not enough people are listening.
There is one Voice we must listen for, and He does not shout.
His power is in the Whisper.
His power is made perfect in weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
Tune out the shouting voices, may of whom are distorting the truth.
Listen for the gentle Whisper of a God who knows exactly how to get our attention.
I agree! There are too many voices in our society –we need to learn to listen to God’s whisper to us–thanks for the reminder, Gina!
Sue,
There is too much noise!
The Whisper of God is heard by all who have ears to hear.
Gina
Beautifully written, Gina.
This is one of my favorite passages in the Bible; reminds me to be still and listen.
Thank you! — Gina
You are welcome, Gina.
I am delighted that this blessed your heart.
This passage blesses me as well.
Gina