Collective Writings from the Books of A.W. Tozer
The Set of the Sail
Chapter #2
The Power of Silence
Listening to God before We Speak for Him
Holy men of soberer and quieter times than ours knew well the power of silence. David said, I was dumb with silence, I held my peace, even from good; and my sorrow was stirred. My heart was hot within me; while I was musing the fire burned: then spake I with my tongue. There is a tip here for God's modern prophets. The heart seldom gets hot while the mouth is open. A closed mouth before God and a silent heart are indispensable for the reception of certain kinds of truth. No man is qualified to speak who has not first listened. It might well be a wonderful revelation to some Christians if they were to get completely quiet for a short time, long enough, let us say, to get acquainted with their own souls, and to listen in the silence for the deep voice of the Eternal God. The experience, if repeated often enough, would do more to cure our ulcers than all the pills that ever rolled across a desk.
Prayer
Father, may I be a friend to stillness. May I be a listener to You before daring to speak for You. In Jesus' name.
Scripture
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.
— John 10:27
— John 10:27
Thought
The Good Shepherd speaks and His sheep listen to His voice. Some of us sheep are too busy "baaing" to listen to the Great Shepherd.
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4 comments:
Hey Jenny,
I'm a Huge Tozer fan. Thanks for including this. I've really been working on silence during the last week. So this was very timely for me. Interestingly, the conference/retreat I went to last weekend put us on silence both Friday and Saturday nights (when we went back to the hotel). It was such a powerful experience.
Much love,
~Cheryl
Tozer had more Godly wisdom in his little finger than most do in their whole body!
"May I be a listener to You before daring to speak for You" ---ummm,yeah, I need help on this one.
I'm speechless...haha.
Seriously, it is when I tell God I don't know how to pray in a situation, so I'm just going to bow before Him and listen, I think, duh, why don't I always do this?
Tozer is my all time favorite...always helps me to see truth in things that are not always as clear...GOd has placed many awesome writers in our world, and so many have left something here for us for this moment in time..so amazing! Love you Princess!
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