Have you ever experienced the silence of God? It happens. We pray, we talk to God, we cry out to Him, and there is no response. The heavens are quiet and still. It seems our petitions never make it past our own atmosphere.

Is God ignoring us? Is He giving us the silent treatment? In our greatest time of need, is He too busy to respond to our pleas for help?

Our questions are nothing new. David struggled with this too. Over and over again. O God, where are you? Why won’t you answer me? Do you even hear my cries? Where is your voice? Where are the answers? The words of comfort? Why have you forsaken me?

Listen to his words . . .

“To you I call, O LORD my Rock; do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who have gone down to the pit. Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward the Most Holy Place.” (Psalm 28:1-2)

“O God, whom I praise, do not remain silent . . .” (Psalm 109:1)

Admittedly, God’s silence is often a fearful thing, frustrating, maddening.

So are we alone when He is silent? Has He abandoned us when we need Him most?

No. Here’s what I think. A few years back a young girl, in third grade at the time, got an MP3 player for Christmas. Now, she was in third grade, her parents weren’t going to pay a lot for that kind of technology so she got a Disney model that did the job just fine and she was thrilled with it. When she returned to school she was so excited to tell her friends about her new gadget. When her father got home from work he asked her how her day at school went and she started crying. The other girls laughed at her Disney MP3 player because they had all gotten iPods. Her father’s heart broke for her broken heart.

Do you know what he did? He tried offering words of comfort, tried telling her it didn’t matter what the other girls thought, tried saying the right things to take away her pain . . . but words didn’t help. She didn’t need words. She needed her daddy to just hold her.

And that’s what he did. He kept his mouth shut and just held her.

Folks, when God is silent, He hasn’t left us alone to struggle through our trial. When no words come, I believe that’s when He’s simply holding us close and protecting us with His love. Words aren’t necessary, only His presence.

“Be still and know that I am God.”

sAdult Non-Fiction:  The God of the Second Chances by Greg Laurie is a book of encouragement in which the author shines the light on an often forgotten facet of God's character: He is the God of second chances. He waits eagerly for your return to Him. Your heart may be hard, your life may be shattered, but God is waiting for you with open arms. He will welcome you home. 

sAdult Fiction:  Return to Me by Robin Lee Hatcher is a excellent fiction story of the prodigal child. Discouraged, destitute, her dreams are shattered, the prodigal is going home. but what lies beyond the front door? Rejection or a brighter future? As the story of the prodigal plays out, each member of the family must search for and accept God's grace. Great book!

sChildren's Videos:    Quigley's Village Sing-Along by Quigley's Village for ages 2-7 is a collection of Quigley's Village songs. It is captivating and entertaining while teaching good Christian values.

God Will Take Care of You

“Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits; who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases.”  Psalm 103:2-3

   J.C. Penney, who descended from a long line of Baptist preachers, was well on his way to establishing a successful career when the 1929 Great Depression threw him into crisis.  His business deals turned sour, and Penney became overwhelmed with anxiety and insomnia.  He developed a painful case of shingles and was hospitalized, but tranquilizers and drugs only made things worse.  His mental state deteriorated until, as he later said, “I was broken nervously and physically, filled with despair, unable to see even a ray of hope.  I had nothing to live for.  I felt I hadn’t a friend left in the world, that even my family turned against me.” 

   But one morning he heard singing coming from the little hospital chapel.  The words of the song said, “Be not dismayed whate’er betide/God will take care of you.”

   Entering the chapel, he listened to the song, to the Scripture reading, and to the prayer.  “Suddenly, something happened.  I can’t explain it.  I can only call it a miracle.  I felt as if I had been instantly lifted out of the darkness of a dungeon  into warm, brilliant sunlight.”  All worry left him as he realized more fully than he had ever imagined just how much the Lord Jesus Christ cared for him.  From that day J.C. Penney was never plagued with worry, and he later recalled those moments in the chapel as, “the most dramatic and glorious twenty minutes of my life.”  He later became on of America’s greatest retail merchants.