Don’t Silence the Sermon of Silence
Why you should listen to, learn from, and live in response to the message from silence.
When was the last time you drove in silence? No radio, no music, no podcast, just… silence. Recently, I have been making an intentional attempt to take occasional abstinences from any “electronic stimulation” in the car as I drive. I’ve also made an attempt to occasionally not watch TV or listen to a podcast while I eat or exercise. And while at first it felt somewhat strange and uncomfortable, eventually I learned something I want to share with you today. I learned about the sermon of silence.
Defining The Sermon of Silence
You’re probably wondering what I mean by the “sermon of silence”. How can silence speak or preach when the very definition of silence is the complete absence of sound? Well, silence is often used in reference to an external silence, the removal of external noise and stimuli. However, when the volume of external silence is turned down, the volume of internal noise can turn up. In other words, when there is external silence, our minds begin to move. In external silence, our human minds can’t help but board some neurological train of thought. In silence, our minds are given room to ruminate, culminating in what many would say is the dreadful and disturbing sermon of silence. In silence, questions, anxieties, dreams, and pains arise, feelings and thoughts that we would often rather ignore. The sermon of silence refers to the questions, anxieties, dreams, pains, and other thoughts that emerge in the midst of silence.
Why We Silence of the Sermon of Silence
Why do I say that many find the sermon of silence dreadful and disturbing? Well, if we’re honest, many of us have an uneasiness with just…. saying or hearing nothing. Why? Several authors have commented on our fear of quiet, boredom, and silence.
Tony Reinke, in his book 12 Ways Your Phone Is Changing You says, “Staring at the ceilings of our quiet bedrooms, with only thoughts about ourselves, reality, and God, is unbearable… Our pings, alerts, and push notifications all redirect us from our greatest needs and realities… To numb the sting of this [or our] emptiness, we turn to the “new and powerful antidepressants of a non-pharmaceutical variety”-- our smartphones…. [we] want anything to break the silence that makes [us] feel the weight of [our] mortality.”
Anna Lembke, in her book Dopamine Nation says, “Boredom is not just boring. It can also be terrifying. It forces us to come face-to-face with bigger questions of meaning and purpose.”
Charles Spurgeon said, “Quietude, some men cannot abide, because it reveals their inner poverty.”
Blaise Pascal said, “I have discovered that all the unhappiness of men arises from one single fact, that they cannot stay quietly in their own chamber.”
The point? In the midst of quiet we hear a message we don’t want to hear. In the sermon of silence we hear our unanswered questions, disquieting anxieties, dormant dreams, and aching pains. Because of its convictional and confrontational message, we are wary, daresay scared of the sermon of silence. So instead of listening, learning, and growing from its message, we settle with an unhelpful alternative. We silence it.
How We Silence of the Sermon of Silence
How so? In a couple ways to be sure, but one rises far above the others. Distraction. We deafen our ears to the sermon of silence with endless distraction.
Tony Reinke quoting Blaise Pascal in the same book says, “The human appetite for distraction is high in every age, because distractions give us easy escape from the silence and solitude whereby we become acquainted with our finitude, our inescapable mortality, and the distance of God from all our desires, hopes, and pleasures.” Isn’t that so true? Often, whether intentionally or unintentionally, instead of dealing with our unanswered questions, disquieting anxieties, dormant dreams, and aching pains, we distract ourselves from them. We use the noise of distraction to drown out the noise of the message we really need to hear. We do anything we can to drown out the sermon of silence.
We deafen our ears to the sermon of silence with endless distraction… Often, whether intentionally or unintentionally, instead of dealing with our unanswered questions, disquieting anxieties, dormant dreams, and aching pains, we distract ourselves from them.
The Danger of Drowning Out the Sermon of Silence
But don’t we do this to our detriment? Suppose instead of silencing the noise of our quiet, we listened to it? Suppose instead of avoiding the sermon, we embraced it, listening and learning from it with humble ears? Suppose we let the reality of our mortality remind us of the fact that we are in fact made for another world? Suppose we recognized and reckoned with our limitations and fears, bravely and Biblically faced our fears and anxieties, and patiently and persistently worked towards our dreams and ambitions?
The second half of the quote I mentioned earlier from Anna Lembke says, “Boredom is also an opportunity for discovery and invention. It creates the space necessary for a new thought to form, without which we’re endlessly reacting to stimuli around us, rather than allowing ourselves to be within lived experiences.” Additionally, the Bible tells and teaches us that silence makes space for us to hear and see the power and provision of our God. (Psalm 46:10, Exodus 14:14). The Bible teaches us that there are times when we simply watch while he works, we listen while he leads, and we are silent when we speak. (Exodus 14:14, Psalm 37:7 62:1-2,5). There are times when the best thing we could possibly say is actually nothing at all.
The Bible teaches us that there are times when we simply watch while he works, we listen while he leads, and we are silent when we speak. (Exodus 14:14, Psalm 37:7 62:1-2,5). There are times when the best thing we could possibly say is actually nothing at all.
Listen, Learn, and Live in Light of the Sermon of Silence
So today, I want to encourage you to join me in seeking to listen to, learn from, and live in response to the sermon of silence. Occasionally remove all external stimuli– in the car, during a meal, or as you exercise. And as you do, take mental notes from the message your sermon of silence preaches. Face the feelings of emptiness, confront your greatest needs and realities, and feel the weight of your inescapable mortality and finitude through occasional times of silence.
Because, just like a faithful gospel sermon, the sermon of silence is meant to convict and confront so that it can comfort and console. The message our silence reveals can teach us crucial lessons about hearts and direct us to the only God who answers all of our questions, comforts us in our anxieties, fulfills us amidst unmet dreams, heals us from aching pains, and satisfies us with all we need.