Revelation 8. Silence and Prayer.
When the first six seals are opened, there is immediate action after each one, riders come out, martyrs call for justice, an earthquake shakes and the sun turns black. But when the seventh seal is opened, there is ampldquosilence in heavenamprdquo (1). Then there are seven angels with trumpets and an angel with a censer who is given incense with the ampldquoprayers of all Godamprsquos peopleamprdquo (3) and the ampldquoprayers of Godamprsquos people went up before Godamprdquo (4).
After the seventh seal, we have silence and prayer. Many are the times I have felt silence from God. There were years when the Lord was silent, five in fact. I prayed, I went to worship, I screamed at God, I despaired, I recited Bible verses, but still the silence went on year after year.
What was the point? Probably the same point as Godamprsquos silence in todayamprsquos reading. There needs to be a time of waiting, getting ready.
Getting ready for what? Getting ready for suffering and hardship in order to repent.
During my time of Godamprsquos silence, I was learning to stop trying so hard to control and arrange my life according to my desires. By the end of it, I was learning to wait. Iamprsquom still learning those lessons.
The hardship began when I came to Wooridle Church with my new wife, mostly the hardship of poverty but an even greater suffering of seeing my sins for the first time and being shocked and ashamed of them but able to confess them over and over again until I accepted myself as a thoroughly wretched sinner whose only hope was Jesus Christ.
Then the healing of repentance and applications of repentance began. And still they go on, praise God, as third after third of my life is burned up. I need those thirds burned up so I have room to pray and those thirds of sun, moon, and stars blotted out so that I can see and hear God better.
Application: rewrite my prayer list and add new prayers.
Lord, inspire me with praise and thanksgiving as you trim the thirds of my life. Fill me with your prayers.
