Leaving The Noise Pollution Behind

Be silent, O all flesh, before the Lord: for he is raised up out of his holy habitation. Zechariah 2:13 (KJV). 

  

  My philosophy regarding music has always been: The Louder The Better. But that has finally started catching up with me. Loud music at concerts I’ve attended, turning up the volume on my bass and guitar amplifiers, and too often listening to high volume music through headphones and ear buds, I’m starting to pay for it. 

  After a particularly loud session with my bass guitar I noticed over the next few hours a constant ringing in my ears, and that my ears were now overly sensitive to sounds. The hypersensitivity went away, but the tinnitus ear ringing has been a chronic problem ever since. 

  Not long ago we had a power outage. I was surprised at the intensity of the silence. Without the 60-cycle hum of appliances, air conditioners, and other items in our house that are the background noise of our lives, I realized how wonderful the silence is that we miss each day. 

  Too often we approach prayer with our long lists of wants and needs, concerns that have mounted throughout the day, and fail to simply be quiet before God and silently enjoy His presence within and around us.  

  Noise pollution from the world, and the inner cacophony from the worries and concerns racing through our minds, rob us of the stillness and peace that is ours as children of God. Noise becomes the normal, and quietness the unrecognizable thing, shocking us when it finally arrives by its strange unfamiliarity. 

  I appreciate quietness now more than I ever have in my life. And I think about the joy of silence I have robbed myself of by not practicing it more. 

  Don’t take quiet moments for granted. Carve some silence out of your busy, noisy life for the Lord. Be silent in His presence and take joy in Him. 

  Prayer: Dear Lord, in quietness before You we remember who You are, Your majesty, holiness, and awesomeness. We silently revel in Your glory. Amen.