Silent night, holy night

All is calm, all is bright

Round yon Virgin Mother and Child

Holy Infant so tender and mild

Sleep in heavenly peace

Sleep in heavenly peace

Silent night, holy night!

Shepherds quake at the sight

Glories stream from heaven afar

Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!

Christ, the Saviour is born

Christ, the Saviour is born

Silent night, holy night

Son of God, love's pure light

Radiant beams from Thy holy face

With the dawn of redeeming grace

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth "

Psalms 46:10-11

10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

KJV

Joshua 6:10

10 And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then shall ye shout.

There is a famous story in the bible where Joshua and the children of Israel are commanded to conquer a walled city named Jericho.  They are commanded to march around the city for a period of time and then at a designated moment blow horns and shout God’s Word.  They do so and the walls of Jericho miraculously come tumbling down.

Much emphasis has always been placed on the horns and the holy shouting.  Something more powerful happened before that and it was a direct result of obedience and discipline.  The power of the miracle did not lie in the horns and shouting alone.  Six days prior to the shouting…God’s people were SILENT.

This is a principle that is universal.

Prior to the most powerful musical notes being played…there is silence.

Prior to any military sneak attack…there is silence.

Within any romantic relationship there most be comfortable silences, non stop chatter is a death knell.

Prior to a baby breathing his first breathe outside his mothers womb…there is alarming silence.

All truly funny jokes are reliant upon timing and well placed silences before the punch lines.

For those of us who leave the television or radio on at night, the alarm clock has less power.  For an alarm clock to really do it’s work…it needs to pierce…SILENCE.

If you ever speak to a wise and sincere person, you will notice that their speech is littered with pregnant pauses.  This is because they are listening and thinking before they speak.

In the Psalms, the word Selah appears over and over again.  The word means, “pause and reflect”.

Regardless of the historical realities involving “Christmas”, this is the time of year where families come together.

This is the time of the year where people are given the time to “pause and reflect” from work.

The days are shorter and the weather is colder.

I am not big about “holidays” or man’s calendar but there is one thing that I can not deny.  Around this time of year, thru His providence, God gives us time to “pause and reflect” about our lives and what He is telling us.

Take these days and this time to be quiet and to be still.  If your snowed in that is okay.  You don’t have to go anywhere because the Kingdom of God is within.  We don’t always have to talk because trust me…God is saying something.

I am not a big fan of many of the commercialized “Christmas” trappings but there is one thing that I believe…prior to the advent of the World’s Savior…there was a Silent Night.

This is a great gift from God to us…remember Silence is golden!!!