When God Is Silent

Carter Conlon

As we look at his journey, we see King David certainly started out strong. The Holy Spirit came upon him, causing him to defeat a lion and a bear, and eventually a Philistine giant. It seemed as if there was no end to what God was going to do through his life, until a moment of silence came. Suddenly God was not speaking the way he used to, and David began to lose confidence. He lost confidence in God’s former words to him, which led him to attempt to guide his life by his own wisdom and resolve his problems in his own strength (see 1 Samuel 27:1-3).

When David finally came to the end of himself, recognizing that following his own reasoning only brought him as well as others into incredible sorrow, he returned to the source of his strength (see 1 Samuel 30:1-3, 6). David encouraged himself in the Lord, recalling how faithful God had always been to him. And in that moment of remembrance, he turned back to prayer. The voice of God became clear again, and the Lord eventually brought him into the victory that had always been his.

This serves as a reminder that in the midst of God’s silence, you must resist the temptation to try to make happen what God told you he is going to do in your life. Instead, encourage yourself in the Lord as David did. Remember how faithful God has been. Think about the words that he first spoke to you, the victories you experienced that never would have happened apart from the Holy Spirit’s work inside of you. Sit down and say, “God, you have spoken a word to me. I understand that there is an appointed time for it to be fulfilled. The answer is coming, and even though it may seem for a season that your promises have been overpowered by circumstances, you are the God who cannot lie!”

Carter Conlon joined the pastoral staff of Times Square Church in 1994 at the invitation of the founding pastor, David Wilkerson, and was appointed Senior Pastor in 2001.