Psalm 119 - 19 - Qoph - The Lord is Near

"(Qoph) I pray with all my heart; answer me, LORD!
I will obey Your decrees.
I cry out to You; rescue me,
that I may obey Your laws.
I rise early; before the sun is up;
I cry out for help and put my hope in Your words.
I stay awake through the night,
thinking about Your promise.
In Your faithful love, O LORD, hear my cry;
let me be revived by following Your regulations.
Lawless people are coming to attack me; 
they live far from Your instructions.
But You are near me, O LORD, and all Your commands are true.
I have known from my earliest days
that Your laws will last forever."
(Psalm 139: 145-152)

Dear friend,

Notes from "Qoph": The LORD is near

At times we struggle with silence; the Lord doesn't answer when we call. We seek Him day and night. We await His rescue, or at least His voice.

When we wait in silence, we exercise faith. Even when we cannot hear or see Him, we know that He is near. We hold on.

When we obey His commands, even in doubt, fear or discouragement, we exercise faith. Though we cannot see or hear Him, we know that He is near. We trust.

We recall what we know. Truth does not change.

Perhaps, true faith is best exercised when we are in difficult circumstances and we cannot see or hear the Lord.

I love to read Hebrews chapter 11, the great faith chapter!

"Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; is is the evidence of things we cannot see. Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation."

The chapter shows us men and women of faith: each is commended for his/her faith, and that faith is demonstrated through obedience and trust. We must note that some suffered for their faith. Was God absent? Unable to help? Uncaring?

Of course not! 

We know that He is omnipotent, 

and that He loves His people.

So...if He chooses to allow us to experience suffering, trial, silence, etc., it is within His perfect plan. We may never understand in our lifetime, but let our faith remain unshaken.

• How do we often interpret silence within relationships?
• How does this influence our understanding of silence in our relationship with God?
• Which portions of Hebrews 11 most impact you? Why?

Heavenly Father, We thank You, for You are near, even when we cannot see or hear Your voice. We hold on, we obey, and we wait on You. Will You enable us to exercise our faith in the silent times?

Here's a link to an audio clip by Ravi Zacharias: "When God is Silent".