Silence Is Not Always Golden
Sometimes, we pray and God doesn't seem to hear or answer. And we're tempted to think the heavens are brass. It feels like our prayers go up, but then they bounce back off brass ceilings. God seems silent. And we may wonder if God blocked or muted us?
Then there's the silence that's neither gold nor brass. It's not metal, it's moral. To speak up can be motivated by what is moral, righteous and good. To remain silent may be immoral. Cowardice. Thankfully, throughout the history of The Church, and in other spheres of life, there have been those who, at great risk, chose to speak out against evil.
And I'm grateful for courageous men and women who risked all to speak truth to power. Today, we need more leaders to risk their powerful positions to speak out against evil, unjust wars, and policies that punish the poor and destroy the enviroment. David French, in today's NYT wrote, "We're making virtue more difficult and vice easier to access." While the focus was on sports betting by young people, it had a broader message.
The recent rants by President Trump are deeply revealing of his character. And deeply troubling for the soul of our nation, our global relationships, the health of this planet and all who dwell therein. The environment is at risk. Alliances are frayed or severed. Fears paralyze many. So, it's a good time to ask, "What would Jesus do? And what are we, as followers of Jesus, to do in times like these?
Recently, Trump referred to Pope Leo as,"weak on crime, and terrible for foreign policy. " He said, "Leo should get his act together as Pope." Audacious! However, to be sure I chose the best word, I googled the meaning of audacious. Audacious describes "someone or something that is extremely bold, daring, or fearless, often taking risks or disregarding conventional , legal or moral restrictions. It implies a willingness to challenge norms with unconventional or reckless bravery, and can also mean being insolent or brazenly defiant."
But the worst, to many in our country and other parts of the world, was Trump's blasphemous image of himself as Jesus. Although, later he said he was depicting himself as a doctor. When asked why, Trump replied, "because I'm a healer." Then J.D. Vance entered the fray, to support the unsupportable. And said, "The Pope needs to be more careful when he talks about matters of Theology." Audacious-ness must be catchy. Beware.
Well, I confess, that was snarky. By now, some of you are wondering if I wrote this or did A I? Nope. I own it. And while a friend urged me to be less political, I couldn't today. For me, it is time to flip some tables, like Jesus did with the money changers in the temple.(Matthew 21:12-17) Time to speak through this blog. No, I'm not portraying myself as Jesus. But I want to pay attention to what matters to Jesus.
So, now what? It's time to speak up. Stand up. Show up. And Love like there's no tomorrow. Let courageous love be our weapon of mass instruction. Love is a verb. It's active, not passive. So lets encourage each other to speak and live out the Gospel Jesus lived and taught. "There is a time to keep silence, and a time to speak." (Ecclesiastes 3:7)
Remember, In times like these, silence is not golden.
So, find your voice.
And together, lets dare to speak, live out and spread the Gospel Truth.
Truth matters.
As do you.
And the rest of the world.
.
38 Comments
AMEN, Jan!!!!
Woohoo! I love that we can still stay connected in this way. You and Paul are in my prayers often and always in my heart.
May Lee Univerity and Gordon College graduate men and women who have courageous faith, thoughtful minds and caring hearts. All
empowered and infused by the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to discern when to speak, when to be silent and how to live out the Gospel
Jesus lived and taught, no matter what.
Amen
What a nice surprise to see your name show up, dear Beth. Thanks for reading and responding. When I see you and Jeff singing in the
choir, it does my heart good. Music is also one of love's weapons of mass instruction. Choosing to sing praise to the God who sees,
hears, knows all and chooses to still love us. Sing on!
Reminds me of a book we have on our living room shelves: THE AUDACITY OF HOPE, by Barack Obama. You Jan, have the audacity of Ecclesiastes 3: 7. Yes, it’s absolutely the time to speak out and turn the tables. I have joined you. We have no king but Jesus! That is/ he is the audacity of hope.
I also have that book, dear Radina. Love it. There is a good audacity and there is an audacity that flaunts itself to get what it wants,no matter the cost
to others. Thank you for your encouragement. It feels safe to hide behind silence. But like someone famous said, evil wins when good men and
women choose to do or say nothing. I should've googled it! Hugs to all those Petrocellis!!
Thank you again. As always so well said. A podcast I watch on YouTube, Austin of Gospel Simplicity, said it well when he said we want to be careful that our religion informs our politics, not the other way around! I'm the other Kathy Sullivan
Well dear "other Kathy Sullian", Thank you for sharing this wisdom. Our faith should inform our politics.
Thank you for taking the time to read and respond. Both encourage and inform me and others.
Jan, thanks for encouraging us to speak out, which I do, perhaps too often and in the wrong spirit. I struggle with obeying our Lord's and Paul's admonitions to pray for our enemies and those who govern us. How do we live in this tension?
Good to hear from you, dear Dan. Speaking the truth in love is very hard. Motives are complicated. And we all bring baggage to our encounters with others and their actions. As for praying for our enemies and those who govern us, I'm with you on that tension. It's helped me that we're studying the Psalms in Community Bible Study this year. God seems not only to handle but encourage our honest prayers. David doesn't hold back on what he wants to happen to his enemies. But in the end, he trusts God to handle them with justice. Then he asks God to test and search his own heart. ( Psalm 17:3-5)). A wise way to deal with the tension we feel.
Bless you, Jan. Much needed, at such a time as this!!
Tough times demand tough choices. Thanks for your blessing, dear Stan. Fun to zoom with Judy and Lisa last week. Miss you all. Hope to see you next time you're in the hood. Or I'm in California. Thank you for ways you encouraged students at Gordon and Westmont to think, care and live out the Gospel Truth.
Bravo, Jan! Speaking out and possibility alienating people you love and don't want to alienate can be so hard. I trust you will get a lot of affirmation that your speaking out has been an encouragement to many. That's what I expect--and appreciate.
Well, what a treat to see your name show up. Thanks, dear Nancy, for your encouragement. Speaking out and staying silent each carry risks. This time, I chose to speak. Hopefully, I'll stay teachable to know when to do one or the other. Meanwhile, I pray and entrust my words and actions to the One who sees, hears and knows all, including my heart. Which is why I take seriously, Proverbs 4:23,"Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it."(NIV)
“Let courageous love be our weapon of mass instruction.” Yes Jan! Well said and very true. And I don’t think it’s political to point out dear T-rump’s moral failings. His behavior is psychotic and it’s endangering the entire world. Seems like we’re well past the time to say “Stop! In the name of love.” Truer words were never sung. Love you and hope you’re well!
Yay,Julie! Seeing your name made me want to catch the next flight to SFO. Of course, having Heather here for a few days already triggered the urge
to fly back with her two days ago. I'm well in body but troubled in heart and mind over these times and this president who seems to have
lost more than his way. And yes, the world is endangered by his whims and wickedness.
Go girl!
Well, I'm struggling to put a face with your names. But I thank you for your encouragement. We all need a push to do hard stuff. And prayer to help launch us forward, whether we feel like it or not.
Jan, thank you once again for having the courage to speak out. Although social media is perilous these days, I was heartened to see many conservative Christians speaking out about the blasphemous AI image posted on Mr. Trump's network. Many also condemned the meme he posted - or approved - depicting former President Obama and his wife as apes. It's very hard for most of us to believe how a man this morally impaired can be the leader of the free world. Lord, forgive us.
I agree with you, my Norwegian sister. Lord, forgive us.
Amen
Thank you, dear Ann. Your encouragment matters.
We live in Christchurch, New Zealand and we, particularly me (Lilian), have followed your blog for a couple of years. You bless, challenge and encourage in God given ways that resonate with us.
Blessings from a far to a close sister in the Lord.
For sure, you win the prize for being a reader from the farthest away. How did you get connected to this blog? You live in a beautiful country. My husband, Jud, and I visited there many years ago when our daughter and her husband were doing a medical rotation at a hospital in Aukland. We loved our time there. So much beauty, great wine, welcoming and adventuresome people, extraordinary scenery and pavlova for dessert. We were there during the spring and attended a Maori Chruch for Easter Such a reminder of the world of people God loves. It's a long flight but so worth it once you get there. Thank you for reading the blog and giving me a chance to give a shout out to New Zealand.
Preach!!!
This is a place listing of Bible verses regarding taking care of the poor. It is rather advertisement-laden, sorry.
https://www.brighthope.org/blog-stories/serving-the-poor/20-inspiring-bible-verses-about-helping-the-poor/
Thanks,David for your reponse. I can count on you to expand on the blog with further insights. That's a good gift for all of us.
You continue to shine a light in the darkest of corners in the blogospheres, Jan. So grateful for your love-led wisdom and ability to speak into spaces that need to be reminded of “What Would Jesus Do?” Always an encouragement to your readers! ❤️
Thank you, dear Jeri. As I've written before, I love when I hear from Gordon folks. No natter your age, or mine, you're my "Gordon kids." Thank you for being lights, living out the Gospel Truth, where you work and live, dear Jeri and Ron.
Flip away, Jan!!!! The world needs more deep Jesus-loving faithful, audacious, amazing followers like you! Bravo!!! Thx for your message of encouragement and action!
I laughed at your "flip away", dear Laura. There's a fair amount of "flipping off" folks in our country, but flipping tables is catching on, hopefully. And yes, audacious, can be good. So thanks for inserting that. There's audaciousn behavior, like Rosa Parks taking a seat at the front of the bus, during segregation. And there's an audacious choice like Mary Magdelene, showing up at the tomb. Both bold and risky choices. But audacious can also be impudent, cocky, insolent, brazen, defiant,reckless, like a decision to start an unjust war, withold aide from starving people.. As for me, the intention of my heart was to take a righteous risk. As for how righteous or if righteous, God only knows. But thanks for your encouragement, dear Laura. You'll always be one of my Gordon "girls."
PS Audacious in the most complimentary sense to you Jan! Bold and beautiful!
Thanks, dear Laura. I took it as such. The above explanation is for those who needed me to be clearer on the meaning of my use. I have read and value President Obama's book, The Audacity of Hope. In times like these it is a bold, courageous and risky choice to hold on to hope. To keep on Believin'! It matters that my hope is anchored in Jesus. As is yours!
Bravo, Jan! Thank you for speaking out so forcefully in the spirit of Jesus and for encouraging others of us to do the same! Bill
Thanks for your encouragement, dear Bill. Good to hear from you. Hope you and Rose are doing well. Aging has it challenges and rewards. May you be experiencing more rewards than challenges.
SO good I read the whole thing to Steve out loud. With great enthusiasm and fervor! Thank you for writing this and choosing to speak out! We support you whole heartedly. And of course pray with all our hearts for the leadership of our country and the world.
It's always so encouraging to hear from my Gordon family. Thanks, dear Wendy and Steve. Tough times but Jesus is stronger than evil and we are filled with His Spirit and Love. Sometimes love sings, serves and shares encouraging words. Sometimes love tips over the tables of the money changers!! Wisdom helps us know when one is called for more than the other options.