“Then Job answered [Bildad]:
“He stretches out the north over the void
and hangs the earth on nothing.
He binds up the waters in his thick clouds,
and the cloud is not split open under them.
He covers the face of the full moon…
Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways,
and how small a whisper do we hear of him!
But the thunder of his power who can understand?”
“God understands the way to [wisdom],
and he knows its place.”
“Then Job answered the Lord and said:
‘Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you?
I lay my hand on my mouth.
I have spoken once, and I will not answer;
twice, but I will proceed no further…
‘I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
“Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?”
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
“Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.”
I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes.’” Job 26:1,7-9,14; 28:23; 40:3-5; 42:1-6
“In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim… And one called to another:
‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!..’
“I said: ‘Woe is me! For I am a man of unclean lips..; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!'” Isaiah 6:1-3,5
Many prayers in scripture are examples of rich communion with God. The give and take reveals much about both parties. In the secret place, it is the silences, the watching, beholding, listening, that truly transforms. Job’s humble, righteous approach unveils facets of his Lord he could not have known other than through long contemplation and honest vulnerability. What he knew, he held, but what he learned in listening broadened wide his understanding and enriched his spirit. When the Almighty spoke, he listened, and was changed. Isaiah was likewise smitten in spirit and compelled to surrender at his overwhelming vision of God’s glory and the power of His voice. (Job 38-39; 41:11; Isaiah 6:6-8)
In prayer, we often approach God with words. While we might express some praise and thanksgiving, we’re mostly concerned with telling, explaining, and asking. As in many conversations of give and take, there is an appropriate time to be quiet and yield the floor. Consider prayer as God’s turn to talk.
What does God having His turn look and sound like? It takes being quiet, and still, and concentrating. Take in His beauty, His majesty, His invisible but evident power. Exhale preconceptions and pining to take in His Spirit’s cleansing, energizing, and inspiration. Take His promises as our own, in faith at their inestimable worth.
When will we take time to listen? Would we exercise self-control in quieting our list to listen and take in the splendor of His words and work? What will we yield and do to practice genuine, life-changing communion with the Almighty?
Father, help me keep my unholy lips closed, and my eyes and ears open to You above all.
As the rain and snow 