Lent 2021: A Story to Live BySample

God on mute

Reflection:

God sometimes falls silent and appears absent. It is important to embrace these painful seasons and not to deny them or rush through them.

When God is silent and seems to have left us to suffer alone, the Bible still voices our desperation and contextualises our doubt. With Job, Jeremiah and those dark psalms of dislocation, we too may fill the silence of God with cries of outrage and lament. 

And at such times, there can be reassurance in this realisation that our circumstances, though painful, have also been articulated (and thus validated) repeatedly in scripture. 

When we are present in a situation – no matter how terrible it may be – God cannot be absent. Whenever life gets tough and we cry out to God for help, our desire is always to be airlifted out of the theatre of war. But more often than not, instead of airlifting us to safety, God parachutes down to join us in the muck and chaos of our situation. 

Prayer:

God, where are you in this season? Speak to me and show me where you, and how I can join in with what you’re doing. Amen.

Author: Pete Greig, from ‘God on Mute’ 

Pete is the Founder of 24-7 Prayer, Tearfund Ambassador and author.