The Beautiful Sound of Silence - we have missed out on being deaf

Silence can be many things.

For a mother, the sound of silence can mean either her children are asleep or getting into trouble. For some, it can mean peace and a time to think. For others, the sound of silence is too loud and they need something else to drown it out. I suppose it depends on your preferences.

Most of the time, I like the sound of sounds: children playing and laughing, music, the water boiling in the pot, the knife chopping vegetables on the cutting board, the breeze through the trees, the ocean waves, the sound of the cars' wheels in the driveway announcing someone's presence, book pages rustling, the keyboard clicking...the list is endless.

Though I occasionally enjoy silent moments, I cannot imagine never hearing the simple sounds listed above. Many of them bring back a certain memory.

What about the deaf? They have never heard the sounds I have described and some only have their memory to remind them of the sounds heard long ago. There are 100 million deaf in Africa and only 20 missionaries reaching them. Think about that statistic for a while...

Walking Away From Your Order

"Waiter...excuse me? Waiter? Yes, is my meal almost ready?"
"Ma'am, you just ordered it. It will be out in a few minutes."

I am sitting in a restaurant sipping on my never-failing "water no ice." I had ordered my meal 30 seconds ago.  I review my meal in my mind. For starters I had ordered a fresh salad with strawberries, blueberries, apples, roasted pecans and a raspberry vinaigrette dressing. Then follows a nice juicy steak (medium well) topped with grilled onions and mushrooms. Sides? Grilled asparagus with lemon pepper dipping sauce and soft fluffy mashed potatoes with cheddar cheese and sprinkled with crispy bacon bits. Never forget dessert!!! Dessert is a slice of chocolate mousse cake and vanilla bean ice cream. These are garnished with chocolate shavings, strawberries, a mint leaf and a drizzle of chocolate syrup.

I excitedly wait for my delectable meal. I cannot wait to feast! After a while, I start getting impatient. I have been here 1.38 minutes and have not yet received my salad!!! My response? I take one more sip of water, get up, grab my purse and sunglasses and strut out of the restaurant.

Faith(Affliction+Suffering)=Perfection

You know those verses that we have heard of and memorized? When people say them we can finish it for them. But then there are times when you read them prayerfully and they bring comfort. It is as if you are reading them for the first time! It makes so much sense!

I Peter 5.8-10

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

Many times we do not realize we are being attacked by the devil. He uses the most subtle ways to influence our thoughts and decisions. That is why it is so important to be vigilant and on the lookout for his traps.

The only way we will know if we are being tempted to pull away from Christ and from what is right, is to know Christ and what is right. This comes through being saturated with the Lord and His Word.

We are never guaranteed a life without affliction and suffering, but we are guaranteed that "the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you."

Being in a world and an environment that constantly tempts us to fall is the devil's way of afflicting us and causing us suffering. But with faith in Christ's strength we can resist and the Lord will perfect us.

Job 23.10

"But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold."