Speak Up

Today, I have been without a voice.

I have got some sort of virus or infection and woke up with swollen, bright red tonsils and an inability to swallow or speak properly.

 

I can talk a bit now, but my throat's still quite sore and dry.

 

Not being able to talk properly was horrible.  I have had all of these thoughts and feelings and it feels as though they have been stuck in my throat.

 

I have been voiceless.

 

The Bible talks about those who are 'voiceless' too - about those who cannot say what they want to, or to whom no one listens.  They are the overlooked, the poor, the abandoned, the rejected.  They have been stripped of their voices and the Bible tells us that we should stand up and speak up for them.

 

        "Speak out on behalf of the voiceless,
        and for the rights of all who are vulnerable.

        Speak out in order to judge with righteousness
        and to defend the needy and the poor."

 

        [Proverbs 31:8-9 CEB]

 

 

I have been without a voice for a day, but some are voiceless for the whole of their lives. Some people never have anyone to speak up for them or stand up for them.

 

When we think of those who are 'voiceless' we imagine distant, poorer countries.  We think of strangers.  But there will be people in our own lives who don't feel listened to, who don't feel understood, who don't feel they have a voice.  And they desperately need to know that someone hears them and that someone cares. 

 

They need us to be their voice.

 

They need us to speak up.

 

 

 

 

 

Face To Face

I love chatting to people, but there is nothing quite like talking face to face.  I often find myself saying, "I haven't seen you in ages!" even if I have spoken to someone on the phone recently, or have been texting or emailing them.

 

There is something about seeing someone face to face.

 

When we are face to face with someone, we can see their reactions.  We can read their thoughts and see their emotions.  We can hear the pauses in their conversation and the changing tone in their voices.  There is something different about being close enough to someone to look into their eyes.

 

It creates intimacy and allows for authenticity.  It's harder to pretend you're fine when someone can look into your eyes and see that you're not.

 

The Bible says that Moses enjoyed this privilege in speaking to God face to face:

"The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend."

[Exodus 33:11 NIV]

 

Often we can feel as though we couldn't look God in the face, because we are too sinful or ashamed or guilty.  We think that if He looked into our eyes, He would be disappointed.  But through Jesus, we can have a close and intimate relationship with God. 

 

We can talk to Him face to face.

 

Paul describes this beautifully in his letter to the Corinthians:

 

"God said, 'Light up the darkness!' and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful."

 

[2 Corinthians 4:6 MSG]

 

We see God's love for us when we gaze into the face of Christ. But we have to choose to spend time with Him, talking face to face.

 

And as we look into the face of Christ, we see and understand that God is not disappointed in us, or ashamed of us.  He is delighted in us and rejoices over us.

 

 

 

 

The Strangeness of Silence

I don't like silence. 

No, that's not quite true - I like (and sometimes demand) silence when I'm talking - especially to a class.  But I don't like to be in silence.  I don't like to be surrounded by it.

If I'm at home, I'll often have the TV on in the background, even if I'm not really watching it.  Or I'll put some music or the radio on, just so that I'm not in silence.

I had the very odd experience of being in a room of 300 people yesterday which was silenced by someone.  It felt unnatural and uncomfortable. 

We don't like to be silenced.

I think our modern understanding of silence has negative connotations of punishment or poverty: punishment for bad or antisocial behaviour - we make people work in silence and take away their right to speak; or poverty if people can't afford, or don't have, TVs or MP3 players to fill their silences.

We don't see silence as a privilege.

We don't see it as a privilege and most of us are scared of what we might find in the silence.

If we strip away the competing voices and distractions, if we silence the noises which surrounds us, we are left with ourselves.  With our own hearts and our own thoughts and our own voices. 

And sometimes we don't want to hear those things.

Sometimes we'd rather hide in the noise than deal with the deep longings and desires and dissatisfactions we find in our own hearts.

But the Bible tells us that sometimes we need silence.

       "This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says:

       'In repentance and rest is your salvation,
       in quietness and trust is your strength.'"

       [Isaiah 30:15 NIV, emphasis mine]


        "I’ve cultivated a quiet heart.
        Like a baby content in its mother’s arms,
        my soul is a baby content.

           Wait, Israel, for God. Wait with hope.
        Hope now; hope always!"

 

        [Psalm 131:2-3 MSG]

Sometimes we need to mute the world, in order for us to hear the true longings of our hearts and to listen for God's voice.   

And it is in the silence that we will hear the still, small voice of God.

Voices

How many times have you watched something and known that you recognise one of the actors, but can't remember their name?  (How did people cope with this frustration in the days before IMDB?)

I was surprised to find myself recognising an actress the other day, not because I recognised her appearance, but because I recognised her voice.  It surprised me because I don't usually consider myself an auditory learner; I have a very visual memory and don't often remember things through hearing. 

But everyone's voice is unique.

Of course, we can put on accents, or change the tone of our voice, or the words that we use in different situations, but we each have a unique and individual voice -

"The sound of each individual's voice is entirely unique not only because of the actual shape and size of an individual's vocal cords but also due to the size and shape of the rest of that person's body, especially the vocal tract, and the manner in which the speech sounds are habitually formed and articulated."

Everyone's voice is different.

That's why when we phone someone we know, we simply say "It's me," knowing that they will know it's us.  They know and recognise our voice.

Jesus said the same thing about His followers - we know and recognise His voice. 

"My sheep recognize my voice. I know them, and they follow me."

[John 10:27]

We recognise His voice by developing a relationship with Him. 

In most new friendships or relationships, there comes a point where we feel comfortable introducing ourselves on the phone with a simple "It's me."  And we feel comfortable to do that when we know that our voice will be recognised, because we know that the other person knows us.  Similarly, Jesus doesn't just want us to know His voice, but to know Him.

And we get to know Him by reading about Him in the Bible and by talking to other Christians and listening to talks and, most obviously, by talking to Him ourselves through prayer.  And the more we practise these things, the more familiar His voice will become.  And although we may hear many other competing voices in the world, we listen to, and follow His.

We know His voice, because we know Him.