ON THE VANGUARD

STILL SMALL VOICE
“…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. Then a voice said to him, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’”
I Kings 19:12b-13

I don’t know about you, but I consider myself to be an observant driver. I observe the road and do my best to watch traffic, but I also observe the billboards that I pass to and from work daily. It isn’t that the billboards change daily, but that my attention is drawn to the bright colors and familiar slogans. In a normal day of driving I am reminded to purchase the farmer’s insurance, buy tickets now for the World Famous Rockettes, and gather together for a Wednesday night bible study at the local Baptist church. I am flashed so many different messages that I am drawn away from the real voice that is calling to me – the still small voice of God.
Coming away from God’s awesome display of power over the gods of Baal, Elijah was on the run. Jezebel had heard of the works of God and a message was taken on her behalf stating that Elijah would die within the next twenty-four hours. In fear of life, Elijah fled and eventually came to Horeb. As he spent the night in a cave on the mountain, the word of the LORD came to him. God was questioning why he was there, in Horeb? Elijah explained that for fear of his life, he decided to run away from the very one trying to kill him. It was at that response that God in turn replied that Elijah to go and stand on the mountain as He passed by.
I am not sure how God had spoken to Elijah prior, whether audibly or not, but I am going to imagine it was in some manner of force. I say that because as a great and powerful wind came by, Elijah was looking for God. God was not in the wind, though. In fact God wasn’t in the earthquake that followed either. The fire turned up lacking God too. All these methods would have grabbed my attention, and I like Elijah, would have been waiting for God to speak through some bold and flashy message. Yet I too would have been wrong, for God spoke to Elijah in a still small voice. This whisper demanded reverence and obedience, and he knew it. Quickly Elijah pulled his cloak over his face and stood waiting on God. It was in this exchange of hearts that Elijah shared his fears and God shared His securities. It was here when Elijah received the command to go to the desert of Damascus where soon enough he would find his young apprentice in prophesy, Elisha.
The wind, earthquake, and fire that passed by were simply billboards, nothing more. They carried within them the means of distraction. God wasn’t in these things. Where He was, though, was in the gentle whisper. That same whisper is still a challenge for me today. I know the Bible says that God’s sheep hear His voice and obey, but sometimes I am waiting for God to speak a little more forceful than in a whisper. Sometimes I want the billboard ads of wind, the reminder to purchase through an earthquake shaking, and the glitz of fire. But if I am caught up in only those methods, then I miss the still small voice of God.
I am always challenged in reading this story in the Bible. There is the part of me that thinks that if God really wants my attention, then He should work hard through the crashes and booms to get it. But that’s not always how God works. The truth is that I should be listening for Him so intently that I recognize His gentle voice even when other voices are as loud as thunder. My challenge today is for myself, but you are welcome to call it yours as well. I resolve today to make it a point that I will listen for the whispers of God even when the billboards and noise from the storm sway me the opposite direction. I vow to listen for the small in the big. And I vow to train my ear to hear only God.