Stay in God's Grip!
  • Home
  • Todd's Blog
  • Remember Me When
  • Contact

 While in God's Grip!

When God is silent...

8/16/2017

 
Picture

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
~ Psalm 63:1
​

Yesterday I had the privilege to spend part of the day with a Christian Pastor from Pakistan who is receiving treatment for an illness here in the United States.  He shared some of the experiences he has had in his ministry.  Some were very frightening, including the arrest and torture of colleagues, who dared to preach the Gospel in the Muslim country.

"Even when God wasn't being obvious, God was still present."

​He shared that since coming to this country for treatment, his spirit has experienced some very "dry" moments.  His heart's desire is to be out serving God, but his body is reminding him that he is very human.

He told me, "I now understand why it is that Jesus had to go off to pray.  It wasn't that he was seeking solace, it was that he was tired, and his body needed a break."

I believe we all experience dry periods in our spiritual lives.  Sometimes we find it hard to pray, or feel like we are experiencing God's present, or find that worship just isn't fulfilling some spiritual need.  It's hard not to look at God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit as something distant or "up there."

He reminded me that these feelings and thoughts are just feelings and thoughts, and that the Spirit of God dwells beyond our feelings and thoughts.

He went on to share that the great grace of God is that we are able to experience God's presence in our feelings and thoughts, but when we don't, it does not mean that God is absent. It means that God's voice is calling us louder!  "God is calling us to greater faithfulness!"

What I have realized from my Pakistani brother is that in times of spiritual dryness or God's silence, we must hold on to our spiritual disciplines so that we may grow into a greater and deeper intimacy with God. 

Stay in God's grip!

G. Todd Williams (c) 2017

Dear God, in the silence, may my spiritual self seek You, and understand how it is that You are always there for me.  Amen.

Jimmy Graves
8/16/2017 08:50:05 am

Very nice thank you Todd.


Comments are closed.

    Author

    Rev. G. Todd Williams is the author of the book, "Remember Me When..." (Chalice Press, August 2021) and is a former hospice chaplain.

    He holds a Master of Divinity from Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary and currently is serving Webster Presbyterian Church, Webster, Texas as their Interim Senior Minister.

    Archives

    May 2025
    September 2024
    February 2024
    May 2023
    February 2023
    August 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    December 2021
    July 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • Todd's Blog
  • Remember Me When
  • Contact