Bright City - Still, Vol. 2Sample

One of the ways God draws us into a closer relationship with Him is by speaking to us in a whisper; the still small voice which demands intimacy. 

“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?’.”

1 KINGS 19:11-13 (NIV)

I clearly remember the first time my two-year-old daughter discovered whispering. I called her over, and she came really close. I bent down right to her ear, and she froze still.

I whispered. I don’t recall what I whispered but I do remember her reaction: sheer delight. Her response was probably due to my breath tickling her ear and the discovery of a very funny and new form of communication. 

To hear a gentle whisper, the listener needs to be absolutely still and absolutely quiet. They also need to be right up close to the one delivering the message. 

This is what the Father draws Elijah into in this passage. With his life under threat from the Queen and her army, Elijah has run away, finding himself at his lowest point, ready to give up on everything. 

In the previous chapter we see God send fire, rain and wind, speaking to Elijah in the dramatic, the miraculous and in noisy activity.  

Now God wants to meet Elijah in the middle of his despair. God speaks in a way He hasn’t before. This time He isn’t in the activity or the drama. He is in a “still small voice” (KJV) – a gentle whisper. 

God speaking in this different and distinct way meant that Elijah paid attention. The fact that it was a whisper drew him from activity into intimacy.

Out of the lowest moment in Elijah’s life we see a new direction and purpose emerge. A new intimacy with God, new friends to do ministry with, and a renewed sense of purpose. So much life traced back to a moment of stillness. 

God’s voice and His breath are the agents of life. Genesis 1 and 2 see God speak, creation come into being and life breathed into Adam. Ezekiel 37 describes God’s breath bringing life and flesh to an army of dry bones.

Get close enough to hear your Father’s whisper and feel his breath. Let Him bring life to you today.