Where is God? I mean, if God is everywhere, as theologians teach, and if God loves me deeply and wants a relationship of intimacy with me, as theologians also teach, where is he? I talk, talk, talk to him, and he is ... where? He says nothing. The conversation is decidedly one-sided.
How do I deal with God's silence, his seeming absence? It's clear that he is often silent, though he has shown himself quite capable of conversation. David the Psalmist wrote of God withdrawing his presence (Psalm 51:11 and others), and cried out in anguish over it. Abraham, according to the biblical account, apparently went many years without a word from God, though he was asked to do some highly irregular things. Through history, Christian mystics have written of God's tendency to "withdraw himself" from us. St. John of the Cross wrote of the "dark night of the soul." Back in the 1970s, Christians used to talk about the "wilderness experience," a time - sometimes years - marked by God's apparent absence.
As I write this, I confess to being depressed and discouraged. I have cried out to God, seeking his voice both in direction and reassurance that I have heard him, that I am in the place he has prepared for me, that I have significance and can look forward to a future with him.
Silence.
Why? Would it hurt God to let me in on what's going on in my life? It only seems fair, since I am, after all, the one who's living it. Perhaps it would be easier if it made some sense to me.
I think these "wilderness" experiences are common to our lives. I don't pretend to understand the reason for them, though I have some ideas. But they are a given: It's a matter of when they come, not if, for anyone who is serious about knowing and serving this God. And the big question is, what do we do when we find ourselves out there, alone, and with no sign of God?
I grew up in Colorado and spent many days wandering the mountains, sometimes without seeing another person or sign of civilization. And I learned some fundamental rules of survival. One is, when I don't know where I am, stop. Don't go anywhere, don't panic, but sit and wait calmly, thinking carefully about the situation. Rushed, panicky actions result in dead people.
The spiritual wilderness is no different. When life is confusing, don't run. Stop. Wait.
As I consider my situation in the mountains, I review what I know about both mountains and myself. Turns out, I know a lot, and often I find myself not as lost as I thought.
As I consider my situation in the wilderness, I review what I know about both God and myself, and I realize that I know quite a lot.
First, God has a long history of letting people wait without his evident presence. Second, God has over the centuries said some important things: that he will never leave us, never forsake us, and more. Third, people through history have written of times in the wilderness as times of deepening and growth. The wilderness can kill us. But it can also focus us and heighten our senses. The choice is ours. We can panic and run -- likely to our death -- or we can wait calmly for God's purpose to be complete, when we once again move on, but at a deeper and more intimate level. Fourth, God never really goes away. A fundamental principle of theology is that God is everywhere present. He is there with us, whether we can sense his presence or not. Very important to know.
A cardinal principle then is this: Be calm. Be cool. Wait on God. He's there, and he won't fail.
Years ago, I was the principal of a private school. It was a high energy environment that could test anyone's ability to remain calm. So I went to the local FedEx office and got from them some pin-on advertising buttons. I gave one to every faculty and staff member in the school, and the buttons sort of became our operating motto. "Don't Panic."
So, I don't panic. I remain cool. And I let God do his thing with me. Sometimes I don't like it, and sometimes it's difficult. But the alternative is unthinkable. God is faithful, and can be trusted. Even in the wilderness.
First, I feel for you. People somtimes see me as legalistic, or....throwing salt on the wound, but I only say what I say because I want to help. I want others to have their eyes opened, so that they can have the peace that surpasses all understanding.
I'm not going to give my opinion to your concerns. All I am going to do is copy and paste the word of God. If you believe that I may be taking a verse out of context, please
read the entire book that the passage is taken from. I would love to carry on this conversation in further posts, because I know that you will be helped. I have felt that way in the past, but I no longer do.
Heb 13:5 [Let your] conversation [be] without covetousness; [and be] content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
To whom is this promis made??
1 Pet 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord [are] over the righteous, and his ears [are open] unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord [is] against them that do evil.
1 Pet 3:7 Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with [them] according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.
Isa 1:15 And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood.
John 9:31 Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.
!!!!!
Luke 24:45 Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
Eph 1:15 - 1:17 Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
Jam 1:5 - 1:6 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
Pray for wisdom and understanding of his word, and set your heart towards doing God's will, and read, read, read. Goto blueletterbible.com for a free speaking bible...it only takes about an hour to listen to an entire book of the bible, (most books).
If you want God to speak to you, you have to change your mind about what God demands of you. God will not hear the prayers of sinners unless they are asking for understanding or wisdom. Don't take my word, try it.
I have found the replies on this thread interesting. However, they have been less encouraging than interesting. Most seem to assume that God is ever present, that if we are unaware of his presence, there is some fault in us, etc.
Theologically, it's true that God promises never to leave us. We can and should have certainty in our faith and relationship with him.
However...
There are many through history -- including the biblical psalmist -- who have cried out in anguish over God's silence, and his removal of his apparent presence from us. Some have called it "the dark night of the soul." It exists, and it is not necessarily the result of sin in someone's life.
Some psalms reflect this:
This You have seen, O LORD; Do not keep silence. O Lord, do not be far from me (Psalm 35:22).
God, create in me a clean heart, renew within me a resolute spirit, do not thrust me away from your presence, do not take away from me your spirit of holiness. Give me back the joy of your salvation, sustain in me a generous spirit (Psalm 51:10-12).
So the question, I think, is why? Why would God go silent? Perhaps it's that we might know him more deeply, more profoundly? We are beings who love superficiality. It's easy. It's uncomplicated. But God is not superficial, and seeks something far deeper than that for us.
And so he becomes silent, seemingly withdrawing from us, and lets us realize something of our need for him.
We are not required to endure these times, however. The choice is ours. But the alternative is superficiality.