Quiet Voice
Then he was told, “Go, stand on the mountain at attention before God. God will pass by." A hurricane wind ripped through the mountains and shattered the rocks before God, but God wasn’t to be found in the wind; after the wind an earthquake, but God wasn’t in the earthquake; and after the earthquake fire, but God wasn’t in the fire; and after the fire a gentle and quiet whisper. When Elijah heard the quiet voice, he muffled his face with his great cloak, went to the mouth of the cave, and stood there. A quiet voice asked, “So Elijah, now tell me, what are you doing here?”
1 Kings 19:11-13 (The Message)
The Whisper
Even the magnificence of the storm roar
Failed to awaken him.
Entangled by a shroud of misery,
Exhausted, angry and so desperately alone
He was unimpressed by the raging wind and driving rain.
Predictable, he thought.
The violence of the earthquake momentarily distracted him;
But too lost in his own despair
He remained unmoved and bound.
The flames, as spectacular as they were,
Failed to stir him.
He was no longer a prophet who dealt in fire.
The knots seemed to tighten.
Despairing,
Numb,
He barely heard the whisper.
Unexpected,
Gentle,
Tender,
The voice named him.
And he was undone.
Chris Matthews