Silence

There are times, I believe, in every Christian's life when God seems silent. Sometimes it may be due to our disobedience, perhaps our busyness, other times our own noise. And other times, God seems silent for reasons beyond our understanding. There are times in our life that God speaks very clearly to us and we know His voice has spoken above the crowd and the commotion, but it’s the times of silence that can be most trying.

The past few years, we have seen God moving, guiding and directing us through our call to ministry in Hungary. He spoke clearly to us about coming to Hungary. Even in my questioning and testing, He was very clear in His answer to us. Even in times where His voice could not be distinctly heard, we could see His hand moving in our lives - His Provision, His Power, and His Presence.

The past few months have been difficult for Jonathan and me. Most difficult has been God’s mysterious silence in our lives. The trials and challenges of missionary life are not exaggerated or imagined by any stretch. The persecution and warfare we experience is very real. We can feel the spiritual oppression that has waged war in Hungary. As we struggle to sense God’s secure grasp around us during these difficult times, sometimes there is a feeling of abandonment. We know in our hearts that God has not abandoned us, but our minds rage battle against our beliefs.
Tonight as I search for some piece of Hope in the Scriptures, I was brought upon a passage underlined years ago in my Bible.

Isaiah 58:8-9
“Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help and he will say: Here am I”

God has not left us alone in Hungary. He doesn’t leave us alone anywhere for that matter. He will answer are call to Him. He has been there all along.

Coincidently, following this time of devotion, I picked up the iPod to listen to some inspiration tune. The song that began playing immediately was Todd Agnew’s “Shepherd”.

It is my prayer. That God will hear his weary sheep and His sheep will hear His voice. Here are the lyrics that spoke to my heart tonight…

Shepherd, Your sheep are weary
Cold and tired, battered and bruised and torn
Shepherd, Your sheep are hungry
We got what we wanted but we still need something more

We need to hear Your voice
Whatever You might say
We just need to hear Your voice
Show us the way

Shepherd, Your sheep are lost
We chased our wants that we thought were needs
Now we can't get home
Shepherd, Your sheep are longing
We ate and we ran, we played and
we danced, but we're empty

We need to hear Your voice
Whatever You might say
We just need to hear Your voice
Show us the way

Shepherd, these sheep are Yours
We tried to be king, but we
don't want to anymore

Listening Carefully,
Corinne