The Power of the Pause

Some of the most trying times of my life have come when it seemed that God had gone silent. The prayers went up, but each day without an answer from heaven caused an uneasiness in my soul.

Waiting was hard. I fought a constant fight against doubt and mistrust. I was tempted to question God, wondering if He even heard my prayers and then wondering why it seemed He wasn’t responding.

But thank God for His Word! His promises kept me afloat. His revealed character kept my trust in Him alive. Stories of His faithfulness to others stirred up hope in my own heart.

I prayed, and in the holy pause – when it seemed God was silent – things were falling into place in ways I couldn’t have imagined. What I was tempted to perceive as indifference on God’s part was actually His impeccable timing in working out all things for my good and for His glory.

In Revelation 8, all of heaven has just poured out a great tribute of worship to the Lamb and to God, Who sits on heaven’s throne. Then an angel opens the final of seven seals. The Lamb has opened the previous six, each of which has brought a form of calamity and destruction on earth.

After glorious, thundering worship has filled the entirety of heaven, there falls a profound, weighty silence that lasts for half an hour. It’s as though all of the inhabitants of heaven are holding their breath in anticipation of what God is about to do.

All is quiet. All is still – save for one activity. Another angel carries a golden censer to the altar, and there he presents “much incense…with the prayers of all the saints” before the throne of God.

These prayers brought before the Lord are the prayers of His people pleading for justice and judgment against those who’ve brought harm, evil, and oppression against them.

The prayers rise to the throne in silence. For thirty interminably long minutes, nothing happens.

Then the angel fills the censer with fire from the altar, hurls it down to the earth, the heavens erupt with thunder and lightning, and the earth quakes under the weight of God’s judgment stirred to life. The prayers of the saints have risen to the heart of holy God, and the execution of His justice begins.

Are you sitting in the silence right now? Waiting? Hoping? Wondering? I assure you, friend, that although nothing appears to be happening, God has a plan. In the waiting, lift up your voice, your tears, and your sacrifice of praise.

In due time, God will stand up, step in, and reveal His will in answer to your fervent prayers. Don’t waste the power of the pause. Pray and wait. He is faithful.

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“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

“But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always.” – Hosea 12:6

“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” – Colossians 4:2

“…It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.” – Lamentations 3:26

“I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” – Psalm 27:13-14

“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him…” – Psalm 37:7a

“Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for Him!” – Isaiah 30:18