A quiet place…I’ve been there several times.
These words from the chorus of Paul Simon’s outstanding work from an earlier time spoke to me recently.
“Hello darkness, my old friend
I’ve come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain still remains
Within the sound of silence”
(The Sound of Silence by Paul Simon)
Did you notice the vision? It softly crept in and left its seeds while he “was sleeping?” Then Paul says, the vision“still remains.”
Much happens while Paul is sleeping… and it’s quiet. There may be some clues here for helping us deal with the hectic, mixed-up world in which we find ourselves living.
Quietness is a not always recognized, valuable, but little understood commodity.
Opposite to quiet, we find noise..We have a lot of that around us.
Before we go too far, let’s look at the definition of quietness. The Google says it is the “absence of noise or bustle; calm.” Calm and quiet are good things.
Much of what surrounds us in our daily lives creates various sounds. Some of those sounds many might call noise. Myself, I characterize noise as an invasive sound, a sound I don’t like, a sound that is loud, distracting, unpleasant, disturbing or otherwise annoying.
I realized the truth of this recently while enjoying a lovely family dinner at a really nice Italian restaurant in Long Grove, Illinois.There are many folks of Italian ethnicity in the area, so this particular Italian restaurant is the real thing.
The restaurant was filled with families enjoying the Thanksgiving season. It is a very popular place. We felt fortunate to have been able to make a reservation at such short notice, especially at this time of year. As we were seated in a large room, the conversations of the many diners created a sound some might describe as a noise.
Our table was near a corner of the room. There were square tables, some round tables, ours was long and narrow with people sitting opposite each other. I sat at the top of our table where “the Dad” is supposed to sit. Our table was also near a speaker providing background music. I’m not sure why background music was needed as I doubt anyone except me was hearing it.
It was noisy enough that it was difficult for me to clearly understand the person sitting next to me on either side. Did I mention I’m old and somewhat hard of hearing?
But with all that said, it was a very enjoyable evening, the meal was excellent. A young lady in our party who normally eats only chicken strips or maybe a chicken-fried steak, enjoyed appetizers of some kind of exotic sea creatures.
The restaurant makes their own Italian sausage and it is excellent! Angela, (she’s my go-to girl on menu questions) and our waiter modified an existing entree, adding sausage for me.
And the food was excellent. That was why we had come. (Did I mention we had been there before?) A great time was had by all. One of our party even commented, “This is great, we don’t get to eat at places like this at home.”
The sounds at the Italian restaurant could have been considered noise, maybe even a hubbub by some, but I thought of it as at least a pleasant noise as it came from those who were enjoying themselves and each other.There is value in that.
“As we speak,” it is early morning. In fact, it is 5 a.m. I sit in the living room of our daughter’s home in Deer Park Illinois. It’s only myself and Jaxon the cat, and he is sleeping on a footstool. The only sound is the heater occasionally coming on, keeping the room pleasantly warm as opposed to the cold Illinois weather outside. The heater is a noise I gladly tolerate and actually do not even notice. And when it goes off…it’s quiet!
There are devices that make sounds, noise if you will, all around us. Most are appliances of convenience we consider essential to our existence.
We have the microwave, the dishwasher, the washer and dryer, the refrigerator, all with various alarms and beeps. It seems every modern device comes with its own sound to alert you of its status. I once had a pager that alerted with a beep not unlike the sound of the fries being finished at McDonald’s.
We also have the TV, and we have the relatively new small device attached to your hand. It’s called your phone. At one time, that’s all it was, simply a phone. Its purpose was to make and receive calls. But now, when loaded with those nifty pieces of software called apps, it is so much more. Both our TV and our phone might be considered entertainment and essential to life as we know it, but they can certainly create…noise.
Through those apps, society cries out for your attention; news, sports, famous people and what they are doing, “friends,” and what they are doing…and what you aren’t “doing,” weather etc.
Might I suggest the only app of any real value is your weather app. You may need a jacket or a coat.
Our lives need not continuously be filled with the noise of the world. It’s not healthy. I’m not a doctor, I’ve done no research, I’m just an old country boy telling you it’s not healthy. Studies show there is a benefit to placing ourselves in a place of quietness. It can be helpful to you both physically and mentally.
But, we find that with the convenience comes the noise.
If we exert a little discipline, we might be able to remove some of the noises. We can discover and maybe even enjoy that thing called quietness. But it’s a difficult thing to find. One has to work at it.
History tells us that God speaks to us more clearly when it’s quiet. God speaks in various ways, but one of His favorite ways is to speak to us when we are quiet. But how often do we find ourselves there…in the quietness?
In 1 Kings Chapter 19 of the Bible, we find a story about quietness. It tells about the Prophet Elijah. Elijah observed the many wrongs, and evil things that were going on in the society of his day. Speaking for God, he pointed these things out to the folks and to the leaders. He even went so far as to try to fix some of the things himself. His efforts did not sit well with Queen Jezebel. She ordered him to be killed—-and so he ran.
He eventually finds himself on Mount Horeb in a cave. I’m sure it was quiet there.
God asked him why he was there, hiding in a cave? Elijah explained to God about all those evil things that he had seen going on in the kingdom and how he was the only one standing up and trying to correct them. “I tried to fix them, Lord, but I was the only one, and now Queen Jezebel is going to kill me.” (Paraphrased by me)
So God said to Elijah, “go out and stand on the mountain.” Elijah did as he was told. And the Lord passed by and there was a strong, strong wind. A wind strong enough to break the rocks to pieces.
Scripture tells us that the Lord was “not in the wind.”
Then there was an earthquake. The Lord was not in the earthquake. And then there was a great fire. You may have already guessed it, the Lord “was not in the fire.”
I’m going to suggest that the wind, the earthquake, and the fire were all very noisy things. But after all this, and after the fire, Elijah heard “a still small voice,” (some translations say a ‘low whisper’). He wrapped himself in his cloak and went to the front of the cave. There, in the quiet of the morning, he and God had a conversation.
Although He can, God doesn’t usually speak in the noise. He just might be “the still small voice” you are missing in all the noises surrounding you.
I would be remiss if I didn’t point you to some areas where you might find quietness.
The steering wheel provides me with some quietness. Before retiring, I drove hundreds of miles over a lot of Central and Western US. I was fond of saying, “I do my best thinking, driving down the road.”
I don’t know if it was the sound of rubber on the road, the wind rushing by the truck windows, the scenery, or what. But driving provided a strangely quiet place for me.
Early mornings for me can be another great time of quiet. The fireplace is going, Major Dickason’s Blend is in a nearby cup, a book with pages waiting to be turned, or maybe a touch to the keys on my Kindle, a blanket if necessary. I asked myself, “why not put this quietness to good use. It’s a great time for reading, writing, praying, and thinking. Who knows, God may quietly ask me to step outside for a quiet word.
It’s possible also to gain insight on thoughts of quietness from outside sources.
Fox News White House Correspondent Kevin Corke shared this on ‘X’ recently;
………..
“The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
-Exodus 14:14
John Ortberg, author of ‘God Is Closer Than You You Think, shares this:
“I’m reminded of how much more open I am to God’s presence when solitude and silence and immersion in creation are part of my life.”
Ruth Krauss on ‘X’ shares;
“Everybody should stop near a quiet little stream and listen.”
Peggy Noonan in her book on President Reagan, When Character Was King, shared, “Reagan later said when he would ride in this area (his ranch in California) he would inevitably think of scripture. ‘It casts a spell. There’s such a sense of seclusion, and I suppose–I think of the scripture line, ‘I look to the hills from whence cometh my strength.’
I shared that thought in my usual morning email. A good friend, Steve Simer commented, “Not that it should distract from spiritual pursuits, but removing the noises (figurative and literal) of society does open the window for such thoughts.”
“We need to find time to fill ourselves with silence and beauty, because we are all full of unnecessary noise and words.”
@Cursive Entelelchia on X
“Happiness is in quiet, ordinary things. A table, a chair, a book with a paper knife stuck between the pages. And the petal falls from the rose and the light flickers as we sit in silence.”
Virginia Woolf, shared by @Cursive on X
And this from The Google:
“The Bible shows that silence and solitude are important for connecting with God, and that they can help people grow in their faith. The Bible contains many examples of people practicing silence and solitude,…”
Mark 1.35: Jesus went to a quiet place early in the morning to pray
Psalm. 46.10: Be still and know that I am God.
Zephaniah 1.7: “The Lord is in His holy temple so let all the earth keep silent. Be silent before God”
Zechariah 2.13: “Hold thy peace in God’s presence. Be silent before God”
Celtic Christians had quiet places usually with amazing scenery. they called them “thin places.” They felt closer to God there. I’ve been to a few of them and I agree with my early Celtic brothers.
In a world of noise, become a seeker.of quietness. It can help you be stronger both physically and mentally.
Like Paul Simon, make quietness one of your ”old friends”