That Feeling of Silence

     "..And the word of the Lord was rare in those days..". Ever feel like that? Have you ever been discouraged because you feel like God just isn't speaking? I think we all face times like that. Feeling like we seek, but God is not opening our eyes, can be discouraging. At times His Word seems dead to us. This is where we must make a decision: Will we continue to seek, and let Him grow us in ways we can't see or feel, or will we give up and slack off until we're stirred emotionally again? The problem is our emotions are unreliable. Let's choose to press on so that we may "no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes" (Eph. 4:14). Seek to know the Lord and obey him, even if you don't feel like you're growing or making a difference. If you do that, then you will.
     Now I have some encouragement for you, because I also feel this has been a struggle for me at times lately. Know that you're not alone; know that God is still with us. But my encouragement to you comes from something I found as I was listening to my Bible the other day. 1 Samuel 3:1 tells us, "the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision". This is right before the Lord calls Samuel. Soon after we're told that the word of the Lord was rare, "the Lord came and stood, calling" (v.10)! Do you know what he told Samuel? "I am about to do a thing in Isreal at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle" (v.11). Though it seemed like silence, God was about to do something great. Just think about that next time you start to feel discouraged.