A Gentle Whisper

…The Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. 1 Kings 19:11-12 (NLT)

Horeb, the mountain of God, is a significant place in the life and history of the Israelites. It was a place they had on numerous occasions experienced the wonders of God.

It was the scene of Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:1). It was where God commanded Moses to strike the rock, and water came out of it, for the people to drink (Exodus 17:6).

It was where the Israelites stood at the foot of the mountain and the Lord spoke to them out of the midst of the fire. But the people said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen. But don’t let God speak directly to us, or we will die!” Exodus 20:19 (NLT)

Elijah witnessed the supernatural of rock shattering wind, earthquake, and fire at Horeb but must have been surprised that God was not in any of them. After all, he had earlier called fire from heaven to consume the sacrifices of the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18:36-39). Instead, God spoke to him in a still small voice or the sound of a gentle whisper.

We live in a world that loves, recognises, and celebrates the flamboyance, and the big things. The big brands, the big names, the big shows, the big displays, the big programs. We sometimes consciously, or unconsciously, look down and consider irrelevant, insignificant, or outdated anyone or group not in trend with the popular brands.

The universal Church of Christ is blessed with amazingly brilliant people such as anointed teachers and pastors, administrators, strategists, gifted songwriters and musicians, and many other disciplines.

God is not just the God of the spectacular and wonders. At times, the work of God is experienced and displayed in a “still small voice”. In small things, in people and ideas and places we least expect to experience the power of God.

Most evangelical and Pentecostal churches today are driven by “spectacular” displays. The thousand capacity buildings, the charismatic preacher, the rock and roll style worship bands etc.

The Church is sometimes guilty of “celebrating” the spectacular. Some have even ditched their God-given vision and idea for the vision and ideas of some of the big popular churches.

Are you a Pastor called by God and leading a church of 50 members? Do not think the one leading 5,000 is better or more anointed than you. Are you a worship leader? Do not just settle for the ideas of the popular worship bands and songwriters. Recognise and develop the ideas, talents, and gifts in your midst.

“…God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important…” 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 (NLT)

The thing to remember is that God works in great ways through things that appear to be small and insignificant to man.

Let’s not focus on hype but train our ears to hear God even in people and places we least expect to experience the power of God. Let’s learn to hear Him not only in the loud and specular but also in His gentle whisper. 

Stay blessed,

Alex