NOISE
A few nights ago I had a very vivid dream where I woke up and went to look in the mirror and saw that my entire body was dry. Like my skin could fall off at any moment DRY. To be honest it was totally disgusting and I remember thinking....."if I could only get a drink of water".
The dream was so fitting with the kind of week I have had in the Word. Dry....barren. No desire to study in the afternoons, no desire to talk to Father about what was going on in daily life, no pillow talk with him before I go to bed. I walked away from each quiet time not learning anything or being convicted of anything. A week of nothingness that started Monday night and just continued till yesterday morning. Yeah, I was in need of some water....living water!
Some might say..."oh caroline, every week can't be great with the Lord"......... My response is that is total crap. John 7:38 says "Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." And Lamentations 3:21- 23 says...."Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassion's never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness". John 6:35 says "Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty". That's right. The Lord's mercies are new each morning. What I know is that He has a Word for us each day......if not...what would be the point of spending time with Him daily. HE HAS THINGS TO SAY....THINGS TO TEACH US. HE IS THE LIVING WATER AND WILL FEED ME IF I COME TO HIM!
But this week I had what my Journey called "TOO MUCH NOISE". Too my noise in my life. Too much multi tasking going on and not enough stopping and having real conversation with Father. A week of busyness and being self consumed. The result......emptiness and feeling very very very far from Him. So far that I called a sub and took Friday off so that I could have the extra time with God.
See I don't care what anyone says or whatever excuses people come up with......Too much of anything is sin. Anything that takes too much time away from my quiet moments with God is sin. The thing is.....when you have had a real taste of being in fellowship with God you can't shake it when your all consumed with your own needs. THE VOID IS SO GREAT! Like a hollow silence that is daunting. I mean, even in the low valley seasons of my life He is speaking to me. HE IS NOT KEEPING A RECORD OF HOW MUCH HE SHARES WITH US.....like "oh I shared this with Caroline today so i will just leave her hanging for 5 days"........NO WAY! The blame is mine and mine alone. Sin separates. It just does. Unconfessed sin causes distance. It just does. By the time I realize that I don't want to talk to Father...I am in deep trouble and need to get on my face as fast as possible. We are the ones that choose to fall back or walk away. Father still waiting and anticipating our return...always there and never once standing me up! THE MOST AMAZING THING IS THAT HE FORGIVES....HE DOES...HE ALWAYS FORGIVES. HOW CAN I NOT LOVE HIM!
But why am I so prone to wander........
I looked up the Greek and Hebrew on the words Silence and Noise....
The word noise in Greek is thorubeo and means....to disturb, clamor, to make an uproar of confusion.....to greatly agitate.
The word silence in Hebrew is duwmiyah and means....to be dumb or silent, cut off, undone, stillness........QUIT TRUST.
The meanings are nothing that we haven't heard but I find it interesting that it said "make an uproar of confusion..............then...... cut off and quit trust". Of course silence and noise are opposites. I get that, but the fact that one causes a negative and the other a positive in our lives is really important to me this morning.
I did not have enough silence in my life this week. Not enough stillness or as it was beautifully put, "quiet trust". The result was agitation and an uproar. GOD is not playing with me in this area. I mean, He is really making me work through this "overflowing with Him" thing and it is not easy. He use to work things through me first and then I would write about them but lately He is forcing me to write about them and then work it out!!!!!!!!!! I have to choose quiet trust. I have to choose to turn the stupid computer off or music off or TV off and give the KING some room to SPEAK! The noise is not making me happy.....it doesn't fill me with joy....it isn't satisfying in any way......SO WHY DO I ALLOW IT?
Yesterday I got clarity. Yesterday I asked for change! He is faithful!
Lord, I would rather be face to face with you right now than here. I long to just be with you. This walk, this journey is to bring you glory but I would rather be in your presence. I can't do this.....it is YOU and ONLY YOU that can get me through this walk on earth. I Pray conviction over us so that we would not ever be able to get away with anything. That you would not allow us 2 seconds in the noise before you come a calling! Make us long for silence! Help us understand that you are in heaven and we are on earth, so let our words be few. Shut us up and SPEAK TO US!!!!!!!!! WE ARE IN NEED OF A FRESH WORD FROM YOU! I love you. I PRAISE YOU..but most of all I thank you that you forgive and make me white as snow! TO YOU BE ALL THE GLORY and HONOR, FOR GREAT THINGS YOU HAVE DONE!
The dream was so fitting with the kind of week I have had in the Word. Dry....barren. No desire to study in the afternoons, no desire to talk to Father about what was going on in daily life, no pillow talk with him before I go to bed. I walked away from each quiet time not learning anything or being convicted of anything. A week of nothingness that started Monday night and just continued till yesterday morning. Yeah, I was in need of some water....living water!
Some might say..."oh caroline, every week can't be great with the Lord"......... My response is that is total crap. John 7:38 says "Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." And Lamentations 3:21- 23 says...."Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassion's never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness". John 6:35 says "Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty". That's right. The Lord's mercies are new each morning. What I know is that He has a Word for us each day......if not...what would be the point of spending time with Him daily. HE HAS THINGS TO SAY....THINGS TO TEACH US. HE IS THE LIVING WATER AND WILL FEED ME IF I COME TO HIM!
But this week I had what my Journey called "TOO MUCH NOISE". Too my noise in my life. Too much multi tasking going on and not enough stopping and having real conversation with Father. A week of busyness and being self consumed. The result......emptiness and feeling very very very far from Him. So far that I called a sub and took Friday off so that I could have the extra time with God.
See I don't care what anyone says or whatever excuses people come up with......Too much of anything is sin. Anything that takes too much time away from my quiet moments with God is sin. The thing is.....when you have had a real taste of being in fellowship with God you can't shake it when your all consumed with your own needs. THE VOID IS SO GREAT! Like a hollow silence that is daunting. I mean, even in the low valley seasons of my life He is speaking to me. HE IS NOT KEEPING A RECORD OF HOW MUCH HE SHARES WITH US.....like "oh I shared this with Caroline today so i will just leave her hanging for 5 days"........NO WAY! The blame is mine and mine alone. Sin separates. It just does. Unconfessed sin causes distance. It just does. By the time I realize that I don't want to talk to Father...I am in deep trouble and need to get on my face as fast as possible. We are the ones that choose to fall back or walk away. Father still waiting and anticipating our return...always there and never once standing me up! THE MOST AMAZING THING IS THAT HE FORGIVES....HE DOES...HE ALWAYS FORGIVES. HOW CAN I NOT LOVE HIM!
But why am I so prone to wander........
I looked up the Greek and Hebrew on the words Silence and Noise....
The word noise in Greek is thorubeo and means....to disturb, clamor, to make an uproar of confusion.....to greatly agitate.
The word silence in Hebrew is duwmiyah and means....to be dumb or silent, cut off, undone, stillness........QUIT TRUST.
The meanings are nothing that we haven't heard but I find it interesting that it said "make an uproar of confusion..............then...... cut off and quit trust". Of course silence and noise are opposites. I get that, but the fact that one causes a negative and the other a positive in our lives is really important to me this morning.
I did not have enough silence in my life this week. Not enough stillness or as it was beautifully put, "quiet trust". The result was agitation and an uproar. GOD is not playing with me in this area. I mean, He is really making me work through this "overflowing with Him" thing and it is not easy. He use to work things through me first and then I would write about them but lately He is forcing me to write about them and then work it out!!!!!!!!!! I have to choose quiet trust. I have to choose to turn the stupid computer off or music off or TV off and give the KING some room to SPEAK! The noise is not making me happy.....it doesn't fill me with joy....it isn't satisfying in any way......SO WHY DO I ALLOW IT?
Yesterday I got clarity. Yesterday I asked for change! He is faithful!
Lord, I would rather be face to face with you right now than here. I long to just be with you. This walk, this journey is to bring you glory but I would rather be in your presence. I can't do this.....it is YOU and ONLY YOU that can get me through this walk on earth. I Pray conviction over us so that we would not ever be able to get away with anything. That you would not allow us 2 seconds in the noise before you come a calling! Make us long for silence! Help us understand that you are in heaven and we are on earth, so let our words be few. Shut us up and SPEAK TO US!!!!!!!!! WE ARE IN NEED OF A FRESH WORD FROM YOU! I love you. I PRAISE YOU..but most of all I thank you that you forgive and make me white as snow! TO YOU BE ALL THE GLORY and HONOR, FOR GREAT THINGS YOU HAVE DONE!