Room for Silence 安静的房间
Dexu Xia
After the fire came a gentle whisper. 1 Kings 19:12
If you like peace and quiet, there’s a room in Minneapolis, Minnesota, that you’ll love. It absorbs 99.99 percent of all sound! The world-famous anechoic (echo-free) chamber of the Orfield Laboratories has been called the “quietest place on earth.” People who want to experience this soundless space are required to sit down to avoid getting disoriented by the lack of noise, and no one has ever been able to spend more than forty-five minutes in the room.
Few of us need that much silence. Yet we do sometimes long for a little quiet in a loud and busy world. Even the news we watch and the social media we ingest bring a kind of clamorous “noise” that competes for our attention. So much of it is infused with words and images that stir up negative emotions. Immersing ourselves in it can easily drown out the voice of God.
When the prophet Elijah went to meet God on the mountain of Horeb, he didn’t find Him in the loud, destructive wind or in the earthquake or in the fire (1 Kings 19:11–12). It wasn’t until Elijah heard a “gentle whisper” that he covered his face and ventured out of the cave to meet with “the Lord God Almighty” (vv. 12–14).
Your spirit may well be craving quiet but—even more so—it may be yearning to hear the voice of God. Find room for silence in your life so you’ll never miss God’s “gentle whisper” (v. 12).
What are some ways God communes with His children? Why is it vital to regularly communicate with Him?
Loving Father, quiet my heart and mind so I’m ready to meet with You today.
火后有微小的声音。—列王纪上19章12节
如果你喜欢和平宁静，你一定会喜欢明尼苏达州明尼阿波利斯市的一个房间。这房间能吸收高达99.99%的声音！这个世界著名的“无回音密室”由奥菲尔德实验室所打造，被称为“世上最安静的房间”。想体验这个无声空间的人必须坐下来，以免因安静无声而迷失方向，设计师还提出警告，千万不要待在这间密室里超过45分钟，以免出现幻觉。
虽然我们很少有人需要毫无声音的空间，但有时候，我们确实渴望能在喧嚣的世界中获得一点宁静。这个世界充斥着各种分散我们注意力的声音，就连我们每天看的新闻报导、惯用的社交媒体，也会带来喧嚣的“噪音”，因为其中被注入了各种会激起负面情绪的文字和图像。若我们被这些杂乱的噪音淹没，就不容易听到上帝的声音。
当先知以利亚去何烈山朝见上帝时，烈风大作、山崩石裂，地震之后又有大火，但上帝却不在其中（列王纪上19章11-12节）。直到以利亚听到“微小的声音”，他才用外衣蒙着脸，走出洞穴去见“耶和华万军之上帝”（12-14节）。
或许你的心灵正渴求宁静，甚或更渴盼能听到上帝的声音。不妨在你的生活中寻找一个“安静的房间”，这样，你就永远不会错过上帝那“微小的声音”（12节）。
作者： 凯辛蒂
上帝会用哪些方式与祂的儿女交流？
为什么常常与上帝交流至关重要？
慈爱的天父，求祢使我的心思意念平静下来，
好让我今天就准备好与祢相遇