Silence Everyone!

- By Rick Carder

We live in a noisy world. There are so many distractions and interruptions in our day that it’s crowding out our free time. Most homes have an average of four televisions and with the growth of mobile devices it seems as if we are always online. In our cars we turn on the radio and in our offices we need background noise. We are contributing to the volume of noise that creates decimal levels that can permanently damage our hearing.

There are times when even the crises of life impact our perspective of God. We are tempted to allow the storms of life to steal the calm of His presence in our lives.

Roman’s 8:28

My family lived in the west suburbs of Chicago where the planes flew over our home every 15 seconds. We were in the direct path to O’Hare airport which was at the time the busiest airport in the country. When we first moved there we seem to notice the planes all the time but the longer we live there the more they just became the background noise. It was the noice that drown-out our quiet time. After a while we hardly noticed the noice at all. That became just as true about the highway traffic where the sounds of vehicles on our street next-door & the roar of the highway several miles away. Noise was all around us.

In the storms of life we are reminded that God is in control. As Romans 8:28 reminds us that "...all things work together for good..." Just as in crisis and in our busyness, we are missing out on God’s plan for our lives.

Our lives are just as busy, filled with all kinds of activities that seem to force itself upon us. Whenever we would go out-of-town we would often remarked about how quiet it was. Most remarkably was during tragic days of 911 when all of the airtraffic were grounded. The silence was nearly deafening. We grew so used to the noise of the engines that when they were silenced it was eerie.

We call this phenomenon "White Noise", when the piercing roar becomes the background and overtime we learn to tune it out. At first during the evenings when we would open the windows in the summer it was hard to sleep because of the amount of background noise that we found it somewhat familiar over time  & it would cause us to slumber; like a Lullaby song.
The prophet Elijah mistakenly thought that God would be heard in the unmistakable sounds of thunder and wind. You can’t blame him for that because after all, God is mighty so it’s no surprise that he would look for God in what was familiar to his understanding.

As we examine closely Elijah‘s experience I quickly note that God was not found in the roar of the noise but rather in the quiet whisper of something unfamiliar to him. Without going into too much depth we recognize quickly that Elijah was the prophet of God that demonstrated clearly the power of Almighty God in-which fire fell from the heavens and destroyed. Perhaps Elijah simply got used to the noise like many of us do as well.

When we examine more closely the word whisper in this passage we find that in Hebrew it can also mean silence. God spoke in the silence of the moment. Perhaps we like Elijah are so busy that we allow the White Noise of the winds and the crashing thunder of our busyness to keep us from hearing the voice of God?

And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. I Kings 9:11-13

Take a look at your schedule and see how much "white space" you have and what room you have for silence. Make a list of all the things that distract you that we might call the, "White Noice" of your busy life. 

Next, make it a goal to put more space in your schedule, eliminating the White Noise that could often drown out the Lord’s message in your life. The discipline of silence brings comfort to the soul and strengthens our discovery of God’s majesty. Sometimes words just get in the way.

Third, set aside time, even schedule it if you have to for some silence in your life. You might be amazed at what the Lord says to you as that still quiet whisper is heard in the stillness at that moment.

Who am I, Really?

- By Rick Carder

When I was young, many years ago, I struggle to know what I was good at and even more uncertain about the rest of life. Perhaps you are the same way. It certainly is that not a matter of age, because even in my 50’s, I sometimes question my contribution. I know that I have strengths and abilities but my weaknesses seem to be more clearly visible these days.

Once while attending a minister’s gathering the facilitator asked the question, "Who are you?" He was asking a group of us in the room to describe who we are but not because of what we do or the title of our job but by defining our identity through the eyes of God. The speaker stated,  "Often we define who we are based on the role that we serve." He continued, "We need to describe ourselves without using titles or defining roles like parent or husband or even your job title."


It took a little thinking by the majority of us in the room to answer the question of who are we? We sat quietly for just a moment waiting for some brave soul to give the first answer. We mused to each other that if someone else got it wrong at least we would have a shot at the right answer.

Since then it has forced me to gain a greater understanding of who I really am. Some of the answers that surfaced were a tremendous testimony of God’s grace and love as well as his Truth being profoundly influential in our lives. "I am a child of God," said one. Another stated, "I am better than I once was." Definitions surfaced in abstract ways that differed from my thinking. They seemed to focus on our true identify in Christ, not as tokens that we can present to him but truly see ourselves through the eyes of Christ.


What I learned that day was that I took a great deal of pride in my accomplishments and in my abilities that did not always point to God’s grace and truth in my life. Often our definitions are selfish and even model non-Christian ideas. I learned that God’s grace and his plan for my life was to bring him glory and not for me alone.

I reflected on the time that I went through the Bible study series, "The Purpose-Driven Life" that became the best seller book around the idea that it is "not about you." Rick Warren quote.

In his bestselling book "The Purpose-Driven Life," megachurch pastor and author Rick Warren enumerates five reasons why people are on this earth. We're here: 1) For God's pleasure; 2) For God's family; 3) To become like Christ; To serve God; 5) For a mission. It's when we realize these purposes for our existence that we'll start living, says Warren. Read more at Rick Warren summary remarks.

As we continue to define ourselves by what we do or by our accomplishments we diminish the opportunity for God to not only be glorified but for his plan to be stamped on our lives. I was challenged to think more about my purpose and God’s plan than my individual success.

I was challenged to think more about my purpose and God's plan than my individual success.

Jossy with Merle

Merle was the kind of person who seemed to know herself very well. She didn't define himself by her jobs or even that she authored many books. She lived 111 years. Today she would have turned 112 and she would have impressed even the richest person or most successful person. It was not her accomplishments that defined her but by how she lived.

If you ever met Merle you would know what I am saying. Read more about he here: Merle Phillips, Aged to Perfection.

Take a blank sheet of paper and write your name. Then take each letter of your name and begin to write down definitions of who you are that are not defined by what you do or the roles that you play in life. In other words, do not state that you are a husband or a father but rather what are the attributes that you can use that may even point to God’s work in your life.

Here are mine:
R - Righteous (because of the grace of Christ).
I - Imitator (of God’s love).
C - Christ’s ambassador (& evangelist).
K - Kingdom-minded.