As qiuet as the grave.

I once explored an old, worked out gold mine shaft. It was an unnerving experience; it was so dark that when I turned my torch off, I could not see my hand, even when it was touching my nose. There was however something more unsettling than the darkness; the silence in this man-made crypt, deep underground, was eerie. This was not so much silence; rather it was, when I stood still, the total absence of sound… any sound!

This overwhelming silence penetrated my very soul, and even the slightest sound I made was almost deafening. The sound of my boots crunching on the stony floor of the mine reverberated and echoed off the walls of my temporary tomb, leaving me acutely aware of my isolation. When I eventually made my way outside into the bright sunshine, it took me several minutes to become accustomed to the normal sounds of the countryside.   

There is, however, and even more disconcerting silence, a silence that I have experienced several times. The silence of God!

There have been seasons in my life when I have cried out for God to answer my prayers, and He appears to have failed to have heard them, or at least His silence would suggest so….

I have spent endless hours asking Him for some kind of answer … and nothing!

No response! No answer! Absolutely nothing… other than silence.

I have, at times, felt so let down … so hurt that I have prayed similar prayers to those that David prayed.

I will cry to You, O Jehovah; my Rock, do not be deaf to me, lest, if You be silent to me, I become like those who go down into the pit. Hear the voice of my prayers, when I cry to You, when I lift up my hands toward Your Holy Place. Psalm 28:1-2

A long and lonely road when prayers go unanswered.

Long ago I came to the initially disturbing conclusion that not all prayers are answered; now I understand at least some of the reasons for many prayers not being answered. I take comfort in knowing that I am not alone, others too have wrestled with unanswered prayers.

Moses begged God to let him lead his people into the Promised Land. Moses died on Nebo’s peak, his request seemingly ignored. Paul prayed three times for the removal of that “thorn in the flesh.” However, he was compelled to make the best of it for the rest of his life … God did not answer those prayers!

Even Jesus himself in the garden cried out for release from the cross. Instead he had to suffer the pain of it.

Someone once said, “Non-Christians don’t pray, because they are afraid God will answer them. Christians don’t pray, because they are afraid God will not answer them.”

In one of those paradoxes that we encounter in Christianity from time-to-time, we know that the Bible tells us that God answers prayer, but experience also tells us that sometimes He doesn’t answer ours. 

John 9:31 says, “He is ready to listen to those worship him and do his will.”

Psalm 34:15 reads, “The Lord watches over those who do right; his ears are open to their cries for help.”

Psalm 66:19 declares, “But God did listen! He paid attention to my prayer!”

When Franklin D Roosevelt was President of the United States he often endured long receiving lines at the White House. He complained that no one really paid any attention to what was said. One day, during a reception, he decided to try an experiment. To each person who came down the line and shook his hand, he murmured, “I murdered my grandmother this morning.” The guests responded with phrases like, “Marvelous! Keep up the good work. We are proud of you. God bless you, sir.”

It was not till the end of the line, while greeting the ambassador from Bolivia, that his words were actually heard. Nonplussed, the ambassador leaned over and whispered, “I’m sure she had it coming.”

I know that despite whatever you or I might be feeling, God is listening, He might be silent, but rest assured He is listening. Regardless of what answer we may be seeking from God, we must never look past the fact that the answer is already written in His Word!

At such times we are forced to live with this proverb in our hearts…Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5