God Is Not Silent

“The LORD has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet (Nahum 1:3b)

As most of you know, we in Texas are in the midst of the worst draught in well over a hundred years, with no relief in sight. Our creeks, ponds and lakes are drying up; our grass, plants and trees are dying. It pains me to look out into our woods and drive down the road and see trees that are over one hundred years old and one hundred feet tall dying or dead. The ranchers are having hay hauled in for their cattle because their hay fields are dead or never made. The farmers crops are drying up on the vine or in the ground, and the wild fires have been rampant, burning tens of thousands of acres of woodlands and grasslands. The wild animals are fleeing to find safety from the fires and to find food and water.

There are hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis – all in diverse places. I have been saying for sometime that God is trying to wake us up from our lethargy and satisfaction with the status-quo and to shake us out of our complacency. He is shouting to us through His sovereign creation that we should “Be still and know that He is God.” God is not silent!

Man thinks he is self-sufficient and he is so wise, while he is so very lukewarm in his devotion to our God. We have said (especially those of us in the western world), “I am rich, I have prospered and grown wealthy, and I am in need of nothing, and we do not realize and understand that we are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked. Because of our self and material idolatry our Creator counsels us to purchase from Him His gold (His wisdom – Prov.16:16), refined and tested by fire, that we may be truly wealthy, and clothed in white clothes (His righteousness, Isaiah 61:10) to cover our shame; and salve to heal our sick souls so we may truly see His holiness” (Rev.3:15-18). Our God is not silent!

He has spoken to us in His Word by prophets, angels, from a burning bush, by a donkey, and He spoke in a still small voice. He desires that we would recognize and acknowledge Him for Who He is, the sovereign Creator of all the earth, and gratefully and affectionate praise Him. The Psalmist in Psalm 104 describes very succinctly how this Sovereign Creator still speaks; He still speaks today by His written and spoken Word, His Holy Spirit, nature and natural disasters. He is not silent! Are we listening?

PSALM 104

You are clothed with honor and majesty – You are the One Who covers Yourself with light as with a garment,
You are the One Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain or a tent,
Who lays the beams of the upper room of His abode in the waters (above the firmament),
Who makes the clouds His chariot, Who walks on the wings of the wind,
Who makes winds His messengers, flames of fire His ministers.
You laid the foundations of the earth that it should not be moved forever.
You covered it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains
At Your rebuke they fled; at the voice of Your thunder they hastened away.
The mountain rose, the valleys sank down to the place which You appointed for them.
You have set a boundary for the waters which they may not pass over, that they turn not again to deluge the earth.
He sends forth springs into the valleys; their waters run among the mountains.
They give drink to every wild beast of the field; the wild asses quench their thirst there.
Beside them the birds of the heavens have their nests; they sing among the branches.
He waters the mountains from His upper rooms; the earth is satisfied and abounds with the fruit of His works.
He causes vegetation to grow for the cattle, and all that the earth produces for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food out of the earth –
And wine gladdens the heart of man, to make his face shine more than oil, and bread to support, refresh and strengthen man’s heart.
The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly and are filled with sap, the cedars of Lebanon which He has planted, where the birds make their nests; as for the stork, the fir trees are her house.
The high mountains are for the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge for the conies and badgers.
The Lord appointed the moon for the seasons; the sun knows the exact time of its setting.
You, O Lord, make darkness and it becomes night, in which creeps forth every wild beast of the forest.
The young lions roar after their prey and seek their food from God. When the sun arises, they withdraw themselves and lie down in their dens.
Man goes forth to his work and remains at his task until evening.
O Lord, how many and varied are Your works! In wisdom You make them all; the earth is full of Your riches and Your creatures.
These all wait and are dependent upon You, that You may give them their food in due season. When You give it to them, they gather it up; You open Your hand, and they are filled with good things. When You hide Your face, they are troubled and dismayed, when You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.
When You send for Your Spirit and give them breath, they are created, and You replenish the face of the ground.
May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in His works – Who look on the earth. And it quakes and trembles, Who touches the mountains. And they smoke!
I will sing to the Lord as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have any being.

Affectionately and gratefully praise the Lord, O my soul! Praise the Lord, Hallelujah!

“God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform. He plants His footsteps in the sea and rides upon the storm.” (William Cowper)

God is not silent, He speaks to me every day!