Day 194 Embrace Silence

 

7/13/2025 

"You are my hiding place; 

You shall preserve me from trouble;

You shall surround me with

songs of deliverance."

Psalm 32:7  

 

Sunday morning, and the sun is up and glowing! It's been a still, quiet night of rest, and although I feel a little tired from my late night on the wall, it didn't take long to shake off the fatigue and embrace the day. I'm anxious to get to church to worship and fellowship with friends. It's been slow going for me meeting ladies, making friendships, renewing old ones. Thirty-five years away is a long time, and people forget, as have I, but once our names are shared, memories return. Friendships are revived, and new memories  begin. 

Pastor Jonathan has been teaching from the book of Mark, and as always, his message was delivered in strength, clarity, and passion. My parents would be so pleased with their pastor who is growing up spiritually to be a mighty man of God, in love with his Savior. There's so much going on in the church with opportunities for ministry, service to the community, personal discipleship, and on and on. I do hope I will be able to adjust my overly busy schedule to be able to become more involved, because community is vital to the growth of the church and the individual. Besides, I have been absent, living far away, and it's time to catch up.

I was very excited to catch up with an old friend at church this morning, whom I'd not seen for years. She's a friend on Facebook, but that is not a place where I hang out much, except to post ministry stuff, but I think I might start paying a little closer attention. As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I have been overly suffocated with all the work this old house needs, and yet I am grateful to have a home, and my parent's home at that. Now, I just need to get it rejuvenated! I was sharing with my neighbor this morning that my mama and daddy always had such beautiful flowers. The yard was perfect with rose bushes strategically landscaped, azaleas graced the front of the house, and crepe myrtle and forsythia bushes lined the boundaries of the yard. Mama and daddy worked endlessly to keep the flowers in peak condition, and they also managed to plant a small vegetable garden. They loved sharing their bounty with neighbors and family. Both had giving spirits, and I guess that character trait rubbed off on me and my sister as well. I'm grateful for the heritage, the blessed memories, and the ability to share with others. 

This afternoon I finished with our study of Jonah with Pastor Greg at Harvest Ministries. Whenever the book has been studied before, the focus was always on the great fish, but there's much more to the story than the fish. Whatever we study, the focus is always on developing our character so that we grow to be more and more like Jesus each day. Jonah accomplished his task, howbeit somewhat reluctantly, but it is my prayer that he repented in the end and found peace. God's forgiveness of Nineveh lasted for 100 years before they reverted back to old habits, but their repentance upon hearing the message of the Lord, delivered by Jonah, was true, and every person in that land took part in that prayer meeting. 

From Nineveh I traveled to Redding, California via livestream, where I attended the 25th anniversary of Brian and Jenn Johnson's ministry through worship and song. Their gifts and talents are beyond miraculous, and their ability to truly worship in spirit and truth, as Jesus described to the woman at the well, goes beyond words I can utter. They usher in the presence of Holy Spirit who draws us into the very throne room of God. And it's not just music, but their ability to empty themselves of anything that stands in the way of loving God, loving Jesus, and abiding in His presence. I know that personally their songs come from lives surrendered to Jesus, in true reverence to God as the Author and Finisher of our faith. Pastor Bill shared a message about extravagant worship, sharing from Mark 14:3-9 when Jesus was at Bethany visiting the home of Simon the leper. A woman came into the home where they were sharing a meal, coming uninvited, not considered a woman of good reputation. Other passages suggest she was Mary, Lazarus' sister, but in Mark her identify was vague. What is known is that she brought with her a flask of spikenard, a costly oil, that she poured on his head:

"And being in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, as He sat at the table, a woman came having an alabaster flask of very costly oil of spikenard. Then she broke the flask and poured it on His head. But there were some who were indignant among themselves, and said, 'Why was this fragrant oil wasted? For it might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.' And they criticized her sharply. But Jesus said, 'Let her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a good work for Me. For you have the poor with you always, and whenever you wish you may do them good; but Me you do not have always. She has done what she could. She has come beforehand to anoint My body for burial. Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her." 

After this Judas Iscariot was filled with the desire to betray Jesus, the scriptures say. He was indignant about this woman spending money that could have been used to feed the poor, when in truth, he could care less about that. He was stealing from the group purse already. This lady came uninvited to someone's home, and she anointed Jesus, wiping his feet with her hair, she pouring her love out on Him, and it cost her dearly, because culturally this type of behavior was not tolerated. She gave Him her all, holding nothing back.

Another time in scripture we see an example of extravagant giving. In 2 Samuel 24 when the prophet of God confronts King David about his sin in taking an unauthorized census, the Lord sends an angel to destroy Jerusalem, but Daniel begged God not to destroy the people for his sin. When God heard David's plea for mercy, the angel was standing near the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. So God spoke to the prophet Gad telling him to instruct David to make an altar on this threshing floor to atone for his sin. When Daniel goes and speaks to Araunah about buying the property, Araunah tells David to take it, but David will not:

"Now Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming toward him. So Araunah went out and bowed before the king with his face to the ground. Then Araunah said, 'Why has my lord the king come to his servant?' And David said, 'To buy the threshing floor from you, to build an altar to the LORD, that the plague may be withdrawn from the people.' Now Araunah said to David, 'Let my lord the king take and offer up whatever seems good to him. Look, here are oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing implements and the yokes of the oxen for wood.. All these, O king, Araunah has given to the king.' And Araunah said to the king, 'May the LORD your God accept you.' Then the king said to Araunah, 'No, but I surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God with that which costs me nothing.' So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. And David built there an altar to the LORD, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the LORD heeded the prayers for the land, and the plague was withdrawn from Israel." (2 Samuel 24:29-25).

David knew he could not offer a sacrifice to God that cost him nothing. It had to be costly, extravagant, and not so much as monetary, but in his act of sacrifice, an act of worship, David gave his best.

My day from start to finish was one of thanksgiving, deep gratitude, for the lessons I learned, the journeys I enjoyed, the grace of God I received. It was a day of silence as I listened, as I remembered, and as I learned. A wonderful way to spend Sunday, a day of rest and reflection, in the presence of God and friends. A day of silence with my extravagant King who gave His very life for me. He gave His all.