I don’t usually care for pithy slogans on church marquees. In fact, I find them rather annoying. However, for the last month the sign at a small country church on my morning commute has caught my attention. It reads:
“There is nothing as strong as gentleness”
For the last few blog entries I’ve focused on dramatic natural phenomena like mighty winds, earthquakes, and raging forest fires. In and through all these things God’s strength and might are demonstrated not only in the power He summons, but in the protection and sustenance He provides when His children are confronted with crisis and disaster. The whole time, however, I’ve had this passage from 1 Kings 19 in mind:
“And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
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.”
Elijah had just experienced the most dramatic high of his ministry in the supernatural showdown with the prophets of Ba’al at Mount Carmel, only to suffer his most discouraging blow when his much hoped for national revival didn’t materialize. On top of that, the evil queen Jezebel, instead of ducking her tail between her legs and fleeing the country, dug in her heels deeper and breathed murderous threats against Elijah. So Elijah fled to Mount Horeb – the same mountain where Moses and Israel witnessed God descend in fire, smoke, and thunderous trumpet blasts to deliver the Torah to His newly redeemed people.
Was Elijah hoping God would show up again in a frightening display of pyroclastic holiness, enraged at Elijah’s suffering, ready to wipe Israel and Jezebel off the map? Maybe. Whatever the expectation, it was clear God wasn’t going to speak to Elijah in wind, quakes, and fire. But, a gentle whisper.
Nothing is as strong as gentleness.
In the picture above, taken at Crowders Mountain, NC, this rather large crevice between two jagged rock faces acts like a wind tunnel. When there’s a good breeze out, the wind funnels through the gap with a decent howl. But when it stills, the quiet echos. You could hear a dislodged pebble click clack all the way down the gap.
When the storms and winds and fires are raging around you, it’s difficult to find those quiet pauses. But they do come. And when they come are you prepared to hear the Lord’s gentle whisper? He will still the racket long enough for you to hear. For Elijah, God didn’t tell him why things were the way they were, but He provided a game plan, and then a firm reassurance that whatever it looked like on the surface, He was still in control, and He would still win the day.
What is the Spirit of God whispering to you today?
