From the Rev. Deacon Larry Barnhill Reflection for 21 Sept. 2013 The Wisdom of being Quiet The quiet are good, the good succeed. Such am I, the quiet man. The above saying is from a class writing that I did a good deal back when I was still in High School. These days it is still a very valid saying as we deal with the constant influx of noise and distractions. Let’s face it, with the spread of the internet, cable and satellite TV, pagers, cell phones, etc. it is often difficult to find a piece of time in which one can be quiet. Finding a time of quiet solitude is important for all, especially so as Christians, if we wish to strengthen and develop our personal relationship with the Lord. In Ecclesiastes 9:17 it is written; “The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded that the shouts of a ruler of fools.” This was a principle that Jesus did his best to model and instill in his disciples when he walked the earth. He is still trying to instill this principle today. When we take the time to be quiet, we are more apt to be able to listen to and discern what God would have us do. During His earthly ministry, Jesus often would listen to what was being said before he would respond. Jesus also tells us in Matthew 10:25 “that it is enough for the student to become like the teacher.” Jesus is our eternal model, guide, and teacher. He is recorded in the Gospels on several occasions where he would go off away from the crowds to seek a bit of quietness so that he could be with God the Father. It was during these periods of quietness that he would be renewed. If we are to be followers of Christ, we must imitate this principle. Jesus also instructs us in the Gospels that when we pray we are to do so in a quiet private place, for where there are distractions, there is Satan. Where there is Satan there is a chance for us to lose our focus and not be still or quiet in our approach to God the Father. Jesus also taught that true leaders must have humility and be willing to humble themselves before the Lord. Part of that humility is in recognizing that we can’t control everything. However, these days with all of the distractions thrown at us, we are constantly bombarded with the message that man controls his own destiny. Buy this, do this, be this and all your troubles will go away. That seems to be one of the major mantras of the advertising world. They scream, rant, and holler this every few minutes across all the various media forms and sources available. Romans 14:20a is a great verse to reflect upon in this manner, although most people don’t equate this verse with the Spiritual skill of being quiet. Romans 14:20a reads “do not destroy the works of God for the sake of food.” When most people read this verse, they only think upon the physical food that we put into our mouths. What we forget is that we are made in the triune nature and image of God. Thus we have mind, body, and soul. The physical food we eat nourishes our physical bodies. If we want to feed our minds and our souls so that they can be content, quiet, still, and working to seek out God, we have to feed them and be aware of what we are feeding them. Our minds and souls are fed by what we see, what we read, what we hear, and what we watch. If we are feeding them garbage, then we have allowed that disturbing voice of the Enemy to creep in and thus we shall find it difficult to be still, to be quiet, and to truly focus on what God wants. Because of the fact that God made us to be inquisitive and to seek out and enjoy His creation, when we allow the distracting voice of the Enemy to gain a foothold, our natural instinct is to investigate that distraction and in doing so our attention and focus is shifted back to the physical world and not upon the spiritual and thus God the Father.
Posted on: Sat, 21 Sep 2013 00:19:02 +0000
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