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Keep silent, and let me speak... listen to me; keep silent, and I will teach you wisdom. (Job 33:31-33) Silence is often associated with deep respect and awe. Courts fall silent as the Judge enters the courtroom, nations fall silent when tragic events occur, and also once a year to remember those who died in war. And of course, as we in the UK know from very recent experience, our nation has fallen silent on several occasions acknowledging the life of one of the greatest monarchs our nation has ever known, Queen Elizabeth II. In Revelation 8:1, we read: When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. Although we are not told the reason for this silence, here are some possibilities suggested by gotquestions.org.
We live in a world filled with noise. In our homes we have a multitude of noise emitting gadgets from washing machines to vacuum cleaners, microwaves to electric toothbrushes, radios, hairdryers, the constant hum of fridges. All this before we even step outside to a world filled with aeroplanes, cars, trains, motorbikes, roadworks, building works, etc. And, not forgetting, the mobile phone with a multitude of apps that offer us noise, noise and more noise. There is a danger that we can miss something that God wants to do in us as we immerse ourselves ceaselessly in a sea of sound. God would come and speak to us in the silence. It was in times of solitude and silence where Christ communed with His Father. We read in Matthew: Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. (Matthew 14:22,23) It is evident that Jesus valued silence. We are told that He: '... frequently withdrew to the wilderness to pray’ (Luke 5:16) Having spent many hours among thronging multitudes, Jesus valued his times of silence and aloneness with His Father. C H Spurgeon, who suffered deeply from depression most of his adult life said: 'Trusting in Jesus Christ my Saviour, there is still a blessed quietness in the deep caverns of my soul.' Mother Teresa who worked in the noisy streets of Calcutta said: “We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass - grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence… We need silence to be able to touch souls.” “We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass - grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence… We need silence to be able to touch souls.” Pauline Anderson
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We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet… For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. (I Cor 15: 51, 52) Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering. (Hebrews 10:23) Around the world, HM Queen Elizabeth II will be remembered perhaps more than any other king or queen in history. Not only was she the United Kingdom’s longest reigning monarch, but she was also the Queen who, throughout her long rule, devoted her entire life with unswerving loyalty to the people and nations under her dominion. She will also be remembered for her great sense of humour; and what a great sport she was! Who will ever forget her entrance with James Bond at the 2012 Olympics or her afternoon tea with Paddington Bear during her Platinum Jubilee celebrations? But, for followers of Jesus Christ, one thing in the life of Queen Elizabeth stands out: she was the monarch who openly declared her commitment to Christ, demonstrating her devotion to Him through many acts of thoughtfulness and kindness to others and sharing her faith through radio and TV broadcasts. On a radio broadcast on her 21st birthday, with warmth and determination she said, "I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong. God help me to make good my vow". For many, the way in which the Queen spoke most directly to them was through her Christmas messages. In 1952 she used her first Christmas broadcast to ask the world to pray for her in relation to her forthcoming Coronation. “Pray for me… that God may give me wisdom and strength to carry out the solemn promises I shall be making, and that I may faithfully serve Him and you, all the days of my life.” Over the years, she consistently used these Christmas messages to proclaim her faith, speaking often from Bible. A favourite parable was the one that Jesus told of the ‘Good Samaritan’. In 1985 she said that the story ‘reminds us of our duty to our neighbour and that we should try to follow Christ's clear instruction at the end of that story: "Go and do thou likewise”. This is not the only example, here are some of the many others: 1976: “Remember that good spreads outwards and every little does help. Mighty things from small beginnings grow as indeed they grew from the small child of Bethlehem.” 1981: “Christ not only revealed to us the truth in his teachings. He lived by what he believed and gave us the strength to try to do the same - and, finally, on the cross, he showed the supreme example of physical and moral courage.” 2000: “To many of us our beliefs are of fundamental importance. For me the teachings of Christ and my own personal accountability before God provide a framework in which I try to lead my life. I, like so many of you, have drawn great comfort in difficult times from Christ's words and example.” 2002: “I know just how much I rely on my faith to guide me through the good times and the bad. Each day is a new beginning. I know that the only way to live my life is to try to do what is right, to take the long view, to give of my best in all that the day brings, and to put my trust in God... I draw strength from the message of hope in the Christian gospel.” 2011: “God sent into the world a unique person – neither a philosopher nor a general, important though they are, but a Saviour, with the power to forgive... It is my prayer that on this Christmas day we might all find room in our lives for the message of the angels and for the love of God through Christ our Lord.” 2012: “This is the time of year when we remember that God sent his only son 'to serve, not to be served'. … The carol, In the Bleak Midwinter, ends by asking a question of all of us who know the Christmas story, of how God gave himself to us in humble service: 'What can I give him, poor as I am? If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb; if I were a wise man, I would do my part'. The carol gives the answer: 'Yet what I can I give him – give my heart’” On what was to become her final Christmas broadcast, aired on 25th Dec 2021, HM The Queen told us, "Jesus whose teachings have been handed down from generation to generation have been the bedrock of my faith. His birth marked a new beginning. As the carol says, "The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight” Apart from her Christmas broadcasts to the Nation, the Queen made five other broadcasts at times of great significance. The last of those was on 5th April 2020 at the start of the Pandemic. Her closing words resonated with millions. The words she used, I use now fuelled by faith. We, who are followers of Christ, are not saying ‘Goodbye’ to HM Queen Elizabeth II, we are simply saying, “We’ll meet again.” Pauline Anderson They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendour. ( Isaiah 61) There are many beautiful verses that we come across in scripture that cause something inside us to rise up in expectation and longing when we read them. A good example is the one above. God is calling us to be oaks of righteousness, and it’s that call that resonates in our spirits. But, what does it actually mean to be an oak of righteousness? It can help to have a deeper look at the words ‘oak’ and ‘righteous’. Throughout history, oak trees have been considered a symbol of strength, magnificence and beauty. Many grow to over 100ft in height and they can even live for over 200 years!! It is no surprise then, that the oak is a popular national symbol in countries all round the world, including Cyprus, England, Germany, Ireland, Lithuania, Moldova and many others. Even one of the Scottish clans has the oak as it’s clan symbol. I am personally delighted about this because it happens to be the Anderson clan!! In addition to this, the ancient Greeks associated the oak with Zeus, their most powerful ‘god’, and one author pointed out that, "Rulers and kings have used the oaks as an emblem to symbolise their authority and sovereignty throughout history. This has associated the oak with nobility, dignity and honour.”* Righteousness simply means that we live our lives in such a way that we have a right relationship with God and a right relationship with man. This means obeying God, even when we feel His plan for our life is clashing with ours. It means trusting Him when difficulties and disappointments come knocking at our door. It means reacting with love and not seeking revenge when others treat us badly. It means forgiving others who gossip about us and speak ill of us and misunderstand us. It sometimes means giving up the idea of how we wanted to spend our day, in order to help someone in need. God’s desire is to transform us into noble, dignified, honourable and strong, individuals who obey, trust, and love God, and demonstrate this in how we relate to others. However, it’s not in hothouses where oak trees grow. Spurgeon once observed: “You are a tree that never would have rooted so well if the wind had not rocked you to and fro, and made you take firm hold upon the precious truths of the covenant grace.” He realised that oaks of righteousness grow strong when God, in his loving kindness does not always shield us “from those trials by which faith is strengthened.” May these thoughts stir the hearts of many with a desire to be an oak of righteousness. Pauline Anderson * Dani Rhys https://symbolsage.com/oak-tree-symbolism-and-meaning/ |
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