Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 19:1-13, Psalm 37:3-7, Psalm 131:1-3, Isaiah 30:15, Habakkuk 2:20, Mark 6:30-33
My best days begin with nothing. I wake up, make a cup of coffee, then settle on the floor with a pillow and a journal. I resist checking email and set a timer on my phone for ten minutes. And then, with a few slow, deep breaths, I settle into silence.
Whether it’s accompanied by a quiet request to God tuned to the rhythm of my breathing or soundtracked by a collision of wandering thoughts and internal monologues, those ten minutes of silence feel like a small island in a chaotic sea, maybe because they are. There’s no denying we live in a culture of noise. I relish quiet, but it’s rare to find a moment where I’m not reading something or thinking about something or scrolling on my phone, filling my head with something. The voices are loud and incessant, and they beg for attention every waking second. So maybe that’s why silence feels so countercultural, so sacred. Away from the noise, I can finally listen.
In one of my favorite passages from the Old Testament, the prophet Elijah experiences the gift of quiet. After a stunning display of God’s power before the prophets of Baal, Elijah was on the run. Scared, angry, and alone, he fled into the wilderness and screamed toward the sky: “I have had enough! LORD, take my life, for I’m no better than my ancestors” (1Kings 19:4). But in the night, he didn’t hear fearful judgment; angels came to him, encouraging him to eat and rest before the next journey.
For forty days, he walked, and I can’t help but wonder if those forty days felt like forty years. I wonder if he begged for signs, if his heart pounded at the memory of the altar bursting into flame, or if the shouts of violence haunted his dreams. But then one night, in a cave, at the end of the forty days, God spoke again.
“What are you doing here, Elijah?” (v.9).
Elijah listed his grievances. The Israelites had rejected their God, the king and queen were corrupt, the prophets had been rejected and killed, and the most heartbreaking complaint of all: “I alone am left” (1Kings 19:10). So God beckoned him outside for the show of his life: a cliff-shattering wind, a churning earthquake, a raging fire. But God didn’t speak in any of them. Instead, “after the fire there was a voice, a soft whisper” (v.12). God didn’t give Elijah more work to do or tell him to stop moaning. God met him, repeating the gentle question, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (v.13).
We don’t lack reasons to grieve or work to do, but what may we discover when we “come away…and rest for a while” (Mark 6:31) and “wait expectantly for Him” (Psalm 37:7)? Like Elijah, we may look around and despair, feeling all alone. God invites us to practice silence, to turn down the noise so we can hear His soft whisper and turn toward Him.
Written by Jen Yokel
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106 thoughts on "Silence"
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I’m praying for all requests, and for all of us to enjoy some silent time with God. Quiet my heart and my head, Lord.
Seeing the ophthalmologist in the morning. Praying for answers and relief.
Praying with/for you ❤️
If only my mind could be silent, even for a couple of minutes. So much noise, even when I try to block out. Have a blessed day.
I love that silence when I can hear God’s voice. This life can be so rushed and loud. I pray that I would make sure that I have time to be still before God. ❤️
Today God let this need to be silent before him (Psalm 37:7) become excruciatingly real when I took a break after reading the passages. While I was in the bathroom, I remembered a payment I needed to make (I know, I know! Distraction!) so I opened my banking app to do that really quickly. Then I noticed what looked like a fraudulent charge in my disabled son’s bank account. I went into instant panic mode. My nervous system was on fire! I sent a text and made a couple of phone calls to try to straighten things out, but the backstory is that my ex has stolen a significant amount of money and jewelry from me and my family in the past, and I couldn’t rest until I checked into it. Part of which is just a wise response. But since I had finished the readings only moments earlier, I read the Psalm 37 passages over and over again and kept them in front of me throughout the process. I got it resolved and my ex is exonerated (this time, anyway), and I’m breathing normally once again. Well, almost. I’m back to read the comments after reading the entire psalm, which I will probably do multiple times today. And thank God for his powerful, convicting, healing word and presence.
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If anyone else was wondering about the differences between silence snd solitude. According to Google, Silence is the absence of sound and speech. While solitude is the state of being physically alone and away from other people. While they often go together, they focus of two different things. Contemplating these two faith practices and how that they each bring us closer to Christ. Have a great Tuesday Sisters! ❤️
They talked about this on the podcast today. Really great if you haven’t listened!
there’s a daily podcast??? ♥️
Sure is! Links are listed below the Daily Reading Guide for the study (on the web anyway). Hope this helps! ❤
Weekly
Today’s teaching was so needed. There are many circumstances in my life right now that are demanding my attention…and so dejecting social media has been my first step in seeking silence and solitude before the Lord so I can better hear His truth in my life.
“Hello, morning, my dear friend
I’ve come to meet Him here again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the prayer that was planted in my heart still remains
Within the sound of silence…”
…with a nod to Simon & Garfunkel
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There is peace in silence sometimes and sometimes you find answers and yourself
My mind just went to an older song ny Phillips, Craig, and Dean called “Let my words be few”
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Yes, I’ll stand in awe of you
And I’ll let my words be few
Jesus, I am so in love with You
The simplest of all love songs
I want to bring to you
So I’ll let my words be few
Jesus, I am so in love with You
From Crosswalk nightly prayer devotional for yesterday:
“even if you feel you have little to say (in prayer), sit in silence and let Him speak to your heart while the Holy Spirit lifts up prayers for you”. (Romans 8:26-27)
Sometimes I am at a loss for words and don’t want to babble on. Thought this was an excellent idea to introduce into my prayer time.
Yes..I forget to stop babbling on…and sit in his presence. I have never been good at “long” prayers. But I have “practiced” praying now for a few years and it has been life changing with my relationship with the Holy One!! Our prayers and heart joined with the Holy Spirit is incense in a bowl given to Father God BY JESUS!!! It’s incredible, all from his sacrifice at the cross for us!! Oh how it makes everything else seem so little and pointless. We are in an unseen battle down here, and we need to get more connected to the Spirit that really fights the battles!! Amen
Great song suggestion :)
From NKJV Enduring Word Study Bible:
“Sometimes the most spiritual thing one can do is get enough rest and replenishment.”
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I have to scoot for now, but hope to get back here to read your comments later!
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Love, hugs, and prayers! ❤
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SONG SHARE:
Have Faith In God
Verse 1
Have faith in God when your pathway is lonely.
He sees and knows all the way you have trod;
Never alone are the least of His children;
Have faith in God, have faith in God.
Verse 2
Have faith in God when your prayers are unanswered,
Your earnest plea He will never forget;
Wait on the lord, trust His word and be patient,
Have faith in God. He’ll answer yet.
Refrain:
Have faith in God, He’s on His throne,
Have faith in God, He watches over His own;
He cannot fail, He must prevail,
Have faith in God, Have faith in God.
I love silence. Our home is quiet most of the time. The quiet along with our view remind that God is with me.
??? SORRY if I missed it in a comment BUT…is anyone else experiencing this??!….. I’m getting ERROR-typed POP-UPS when navigating SRT like “shereads says 568” (often with a long line) to which I need to either press ‘OK’ or ‘Cancel’ “. ???
I had the same thing happening last week. My DIL told me to shut down my phone/computer and restart. It worked, however, today I have a blank text box showing up so need to shut down and restart again.
Yes, it’s on their end b/c many of us are getting it.
Yes, I just did the shut down/restart and still get the text box with 568 in it. Did you notice some strange stuff at the end of the devotional?
We are working on getting this error fixed! Thank you all for your patience!
Thank you SRT for letting us know…and thank you to all my sisters for reassuring me!!
Yes. Getting the same error messages.
yes same. all day
Still getting it at 8:45 pm
These glitches seem to happen when they are preparing for a new study, but that’s just my thought. ☺
What a beautiful picture ❤️
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I loved this! I’ve always been a person who needs quiet! Especially with God. Put me in a large gathering and it drains me. Once I’m through, I enjoy the quiet that much more. Just setting in silence though is a practice that I struggle with! Slowing my mind down just to sit with God! I’m going to try to incorporate the 10 minutes of just sitting with God without doing! Just slow down!
Praying for all who have littles or work! It’s hard for you to get that time! Also praying over the other requests!
Me too Cheryl! I am overstimulated by large gatherings and need time to get away!
What a beautiful picture came to my mind while reading comments of everyone’s early morning routine stories. Women across the nation and across the pond coming quietly together to read and worship God.. My heart is full of peace
I love this picture Cindy!
I started listening to the podcast this morning while on the treadmill. I need something to look forward to and listen so I don’t dread the treadmill. Too dark to run outside. Solitude. Silence. Oh how we need BOTH! I do love how they mention that to have Silence doesn’t necessarily mean Solitude. Just be silent. No words. Quiet. Sigh…. I LOVE mornings, love to watch the sunrise, the sound of birds. Just JESUS and I.
Happy Tuesday sweets!
I’m definitely in a season with more silence. God has allowed a lot of “friends” to leave my life or just remain quiet and distant, because of what happened to me a few months ago. It’s left a lot of space to hear God… or the opposite, to feel bombarded by words of Satan – painful reminders of the past, creating loneliness and disappointment. I have to really guard myself from making assumptions about others or allowing feelings of rejection to reign over me.. and that is quite difficult.
I can relate to Elijah. But there is hope to be had and I hold onto that… I’d rather be hopeful than let the enemy gloat over me and convince me that he is the victor.
❤️Lord Jesus, please carry us brokenhearted women along like a baby sheep.
I left you a message, and I don’t see it now! (I have been getting the messed up response as others, but usually the Reply still goes through(
Anywho-
I said to not let those thoughts take a foothold, or the devil has access and more power! Cast them out…(I know you know this…but I am joining in with you). We know that the weeds take over and stunt our growth. So the weeds have been cleared for your good, now you can grow and blossom!
Yes, thank you, Rhonda. Good reminder. I am trying to guard myself from those lies and remember the Word that says I’m valuable and precious 1 Peter 2:4. Also I accidentally put my full name here so I’m praying this doesn’t show up on web searches, ugh.
I kinda thought silence is a double down on yesterday’s solitude. Silence has become the rare gift people don’t know they want or need. We are so distracted, busy people. It is so disturbing that everywhere you look people are staring at their phones. No one seems to talk anymore, or just be. Looking around them, staring into a blue sky, or observing. Reminds me of “Sunday Drives” after church growing up–Where are we going?” “Just driving and looking at everything!” …”Ughhhh Can we just go home…” Now, I love to drive and just look around at trees, houses, landscapes..!
BUT usually the radio is on and I’m singing! I’m ALWAYS singing…so how can I be silent??!!
I think we had this discussion a few years ago and Kelly NEO was telling us how to practice meditation. And to sit in silence with a timer. Starting small and just trying for 3 minutes. I have fallen out of that practice, but proved to be such a great discipline! Clearing the noise! Let’s do this! I like that so many of you are able to get up early before work and kids. Kudos to you! I could have never done that in my working years, I always slept till the last possible moment.
Thank you for your continued prayers for Brayden my grandson. We write daily, and it’s so amazing to see him talking about God!! I pray he will continue to seek him no matter what shall come on Thursday when he has court. If he gets released I pray he will have somewhere to stay.
Praying for your grandson
Praying for Brayden ❤️
Praying for Brayden. And you, and your sister and family ❤️
My quiet mornings have become my non-negotiable for me. It is my time of the day when I just sit down in the quiet, maybe one lamp light on, and read my devotions while sipping on my coffee. That routine meeting with God first thing in the morning, sets the tone for the rest of my day. It is my favorite time of the day.
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Silence and stillness are very challenging for me. But, I love what RHONDA J mentioned above (attributed to one of your many beautiful contributions over the years)….maybe I’ll start with TWO minutes;)
You can do it!
There is a Catholic writer named Matthew Kelly who uses the phrase “the classroom of silence.” It has spoke to me deeply and I try to recover from my type A get it all done personality and frame silence as its own classroom.
I love that phrasing, Karen. “Classroom of silence” so good
Karen years ago I met Matthew Kelly! I just pulled his book out the other day.
Matthew Kelly spoke at a leadership meeting i was at many years ago ❤️
Good morning, Shes
I live alone and sometimes I really dont like it.
I struggle with the silence and feel the need to always have the tv on.
My mornings belong to God and I reserve those moments before 6:30 for quiet times and Bible reading.
Liz and Rita are at the same rehab facility. I went to see them yesterday. Liz is in some intensive physical therapy and appears happy.Her sister is here. Miraculously, her student health insurance is covering the bills.
Rita ‘s eyes are open but she is unresponsive. She has a feeding tube. She has had a fever.
Please pray for her 18 year old son. He leaves for college in Chicago on the 14th. His name is Leo.
Praying for these two friends. How scary and challenging how life can change in an instant. Glad the Lord gave them you to come and be a visitor and friend! Glad Liz’s sister got to be here and that the bills are being paid! Tell them an army of She’s are praying for them!
Praying over your two friends and her 18 yr old son!
Praying for them and grateful you got to see them.
Praying for your friend’s and for Leo ❤️
“God invites us to practice silence, to turn down the noise so we can hear His soft whisper and turn toward Him.”
What a beautiful practice to seek out – silence. We are created for fellowship and relationship with the Lord and turning down the noise is important. Today may we find those moments of silence to just sit at the feet of Jesus, experience His presence and wait with expectation that He will speak and minister to our hearts.
Have a blessed day.
I’m like many of you, I set my alarm to wake me before everyone else and spend time with the Lord. SRT was helped me to be consistent and to open my Bible daily. I love this time in the morning when my thoughts are turned towards God.
I will look up that book by John Mark Comer. TY.
“God invites us to practice silence, to turn down the noise so we can hear His soft whisper and turn toward Him.”
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Mark 6:31 “[Jesus] said to them, ‘Come away by yourselves to a remote place and rest for a while.’”
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I have rarely experienced total silence. There is always something making sounds–birds, wind, traffic in the distance.
But quieting my mind to hear Jesus is the most challenging.
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Praying you hear the Lord’s voice today.
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cherishing my last few minutes of silence this morning, knowing they will cost me being on time, but this one is too good not to meditate on. I’ve been in a season of silence from God for a while now. Not waiting, but silence, it’s a strange thing. Like Elijah he’s shown me he’s here, he’s just not speaking. It has been very frustrating, but I have felt the Lord tell me, Lanie, I’m getting you off the milk. you have to move to solid food. I can feel him trying to push me to maturity when I still want to be nursing. Its been very challenging to feel content. I am reminded of our passage out of phillipians 4 yesterday when Paul says I am content in all circumstances. Our pastor said in context, I can do all things through him who gives me strength, is better translated to even if my circumstances do not change, I can be content in this circumstance. This was really helpful for me bc I have always known this verse in a sports context, aka I can overcome, I can achieve, I can move forward through him who gives me strength. weird thinking about, I can sit in silence through him who gives me strength.
Thank you for sharing Lanie. I hope your extra time here this morning will encourage your heart and carry you through the feeling rushed :)
Since retiring, my mornings are now very precious. I wake before my husband, take my coffee and spend my morning in God’s word with She Reads Truth Bible study. Today’s readings show me the importance of the quiet for my understanding of His word. My day is so much better because He is first each day
BG verse Psalm 143:10
Teach me to do Your will, For You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness.
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Elijah, sharing his frustrations with God and quieting to listen to God’s still small voice. And all the while, God provided.
What strength there can be in the provision of the Lord. Strengthen me today, please Lord, in the limited silence I will have and in the meetings and chaos of the day. I’ll need Your wisdom today as I always do, thank you, Lord.
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Verse 7 in Psalm 37,
Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
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How distracting to us are the lives of others, those making bank or whatever the current phrase may be, gaining in popularity while drawing attention to their sin, like it’s something good. Lord help me see when I am guilty of thinking there is something good to my sin.
Amen.
Praying for your quietness and peace ❤️
Amen
The older I get, the more I am convinced we are created in such a way to need that rest and quiet. As a culture, we’ve sacrificed to the idol of productivity and business at the expense of being still and knowing that God is God. There is a time for good, hard work, but those times are balanced by the human need for rest. We acknowledge our reliance on God in our need for and experience of rest. May the Lord align our heart to His will and His ways as we live out our days before Him!
Amen!
Yes!
This was such a good reminder that sometimes I just need to be quiet and listen. There’s so much noise around us and in our own heads that it’s easy to miss God’s gentle whisper. I loved the reminder that I don’t always need to figure everything out or have all the answers. Sometimes I just need to slow down, get quiet, and let God speak.
Amen! Thank you for this! I am in a short season of (life changing) waiting this week and I have been so convicted of my need to be quiet and listen to the Lord!
I feel that I have been waiting for the Lord for a long, long, time. Maybe I’m not waiting patiently or “expectantly” enough. These times we’re in Jeff and I feel so all alone. I wonder if God will move, if He will restore and rebuild our church. Jeff has been a faithful servant these 33 years, and obedient. I pray we see some reward for that – that our church will once again be filled, that we would be encouraged.
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May I be still enough to hear His still small voice. And may I be encouraged that God is near, even when it doesn’t seem so.
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Have a blessed Tuesday ladies, and @Tami – happy belated birthday!
Praying, Sharon, for the Lord to reveal His will and guidance for you, Jeff and the church.
sharon, I saw your VBS pictures yesterday and was full of joy, it looked like so much fun! I ended up having a dream that I met you and told you that and your response was, you know, you don’t use punctuation correctly in your post. lol! I am still laughing at my weird dream this morning.
also Sharon! I loved reading the rest of the Isaiah chapter. I didn’t realize it lead to one of my favorite verses. I feel like it will encourage you in your situation too!
My first thought of the Isaiah passage was like…What, you can’t leave it hanging there! So yes, I had to read the rest of it as well! It’s so good b/c it came off such a high, crazy showing of God’s power…then crashed into his fear and escaping. I love the passages that show that NOTHING was easy..with God, yet, he has to keep getting us to rely completely on him. We have become Christians that think everything should be great in our lives with Jesus!
Praying for you in this season Lanie! And that’s funny about your dream. I never remember my dreams except when their really weird like that.
yes same! I was like ok, where’s my BUT GOD moment. I always tell myself if you step to the right or to the left his voice will tell me this is the way, walk in it
May He continue to give you peace and purpose as you and Jeff trust in Him. ❤️
Lanie’s dream is comical! Haha made me smile lol
Praying for you in the waiting!
It’s hard to feel so alone. I have experienced this. Prayers for restoration.
Praying Sharon❤️
Praying for you and Jeff, Sharon ❤️
I am currently reading “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry” by John Mark Comer and what I have read so far is mimicking what we have been talking about this week. It is a beautiful, star-filled morning so I am going to sign off and spend 5 minutes in silence:) Have a blessed day ladies! Oh and I highly recommend the book! Also Tyler Staton’s “Praying like monks, living like fools”! His book has a chapter on silence.
Happy belated birthday, Tami! ❤️
Thank you!
Great book suggestions :)
I recommended that book a few weeks ago. It has changed my life especially in regards to his words on the Sabbath
Highly recommend both of those books-life changing!
Amen❤️
What truth you speak, Jen Yokel.. thank you..
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I was reminded of a distraught and broken hearted me, standing in God’s house, angry, broken, lost and just plain old disrespectful to God, when i was exhausted and tired and sat down in the silence of the church, even falling asleep, it was then, that I saw the gift He wanted to give me.. Julee running through the meadow!
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In the noisiness and loudness of my ranting, I could not see, or hear anything else. I was focused on my ‘beef’ with God. I would not have heard thunder if it had sounded in my ear!
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BUT GOD..
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Ever present, ever patient God, He waited for my rant to be over, then He gifted me in His mercy, the precious gift, that I hold dear every day.
I had to be silent, I had to be still and I had to have nothing left in me, in both mind and soul, ‘I had to have calm and quietness in my soul’
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The poem, Desiderata, has a line .. in fact, the first line..
Go placidly amid the noise and haste, remember what peace there may be in silence..
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Lord, I am so very thankful for your mercy and grace that day, that through my being still and silent you gifted me with ‘life’ and the peace, to be able to put one foot in front of the other, to now be..
Thank you Father God, thank you from a grateful heart.. always.
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Amen..
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Happy Tuesday my dears..❤️❤️❤️
Amen, Tina!
While the environment around us never lacks for noise, sometimes the noise in my head is the loudest and most distracting of all!
I literally just said the same exact thing to a friend this week Sally!
Tina, what a gift the Lord gave you! I am always in awe when you tell of this! Thank you:)
Thank you for sharing such a tender, beautiful reminder ❤️
What a gift. My sister keeps getting the gift of butterflies and dragon flies all around her. I know she has such a hard burden here on everyday missing her daughter and the ache. But know God can get her through it. It’s always a blessing to hear your testimony! :)
Tina I had a friend do a large painting for me of the Desiderata. It hangs in a guest room. It’s a beautiful poem.
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So beautiful, Tina ❤️
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