A Sound of Sheer Silence

 

God in a recent steamy still summer sunrise.
God in the stilling of the storm at sea.
God in a sound of sheer silence.
About a two weeks ago we had the most spectacular lightning. The whole northern sky would light up and very distinct streaks of lightning, some in clear Y shapes, would last longer than usual. I experienced God in the lightning. Powerful storms and natural spectacles have traditionally been seen as signs of God's presence.
In 1 Kings 19:11-13 the prophet Elijah experiences God, not in a fierce wind or an earthquake or a fire, but in a sound of sheer silence. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary says that it is important in the translation to preserve the paradox of sound and silence as signs of God's passing by.
In Matthew 14:22-33 the disciples experience God in Jesus' stilling the storm on the Sea of Galilee.
The wind today has been from the east and southeast. When that happens the sounds of boats and wave runners on the lake are carred away from our shore. We can see the boats but we can barely hear them. I felt God's presence in the stillness.