We usually search for exciting, extraordinary, and adrenaline-pumping events. In them we hope to find satisfaction. On the other hand, we avoid at any cost any troublesome, threatening moments that would bring suffering. You would willingly do bungee jumping but terrified by a simple dentist procedure, tooth extraction, asking for a double dose of nitrous oxide. We expect God to behave similarly, coming to us in exciting moments. We never admit he could come amidst the trouble.
Yet God very rarely reveals himself in extraordinary events, as we might expect. A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the LORD— but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake— but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire— but the LORD was not in the fire (1 Kings 19:11).
After such extraordinary and exciting moments, a tiny whispering sound and the Lord was in it. The Hebrew original reads קול דממה דקה kol demama daka – a voice, still & calm, gentle. Some translations say a gentle breeze of the day. The idea is an ordinary moment, in which ‘nothing happens’. Yet in this absolute silence, without any spectacle or force, the Lord comes to Elijah. Indeed, the modern Hebrew uses this phrase to express absolute silence. It is important to practice silence before the Lord.
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Such an ‘unexcited, adrenaline-less’ thing is the privileged moment for the Lord to come. Saint Ambrose in his commentary to Ps118 says Open the door of your soul and keep it open to the one who comes. For Jesus says, “I and the Father will come to him, and we’ll enter and dwell with him”. (John 14:23) He tells us that the door of soul has different parts. The first one is the mind. Extend the capacity of your mind so you may enjoy the richness of simplicity, of peace and grace. In other words, do not restrain what God can do. Do not restrain him but allow him to act. Do not restrain your mind so it may notice when the Lord speaks to you through the words of the Scriptures, through other people. When he speaks through ideas that he himself suggests.
Ambrose goes on saying extend your heart. Run to meet the eternal Light that illumines every man coming to this world (John 1:9). Open your heart and keep it open, so the Lord can enter. If you do not open it, he will stay outside. He cannot break in. He doesn’t want to force anyone. Those who want to receive him, however, will receive him.
Part of the door is also our faith. Faith as trust. Ambrose says keep it open so Christ my freely walk in. If your faith is sincere and strong, it will be a great support for your house. (Song of songs 5:2)
These are the simple first steps to prepare ourselves for the silence in which the Lord speaks. However, Ambrose reminds us that the Lord comes to us, especially in the time of tribulation. He wants to support us so we may stand the pressure. He says we may be overcome by anxiety and fear, but he is there to support you. Therefore, it is important that we are vigilant. If we keep our hearts and minds open, we will recognize when he is knocking on the door of our hearts. If you are vigilant, he will walk in. Open the door of your soul, so the Lord may enter.
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He comes to us precisely in the troublesome moments of our lives. This is exactly the experience of Elijah, the prophet. He was fleeing from Jezabel, the queen of Israel, who promises vengeance for the murder of the hundreds of priests of Baal. Elijah runs away to save his life, arriving in the wilderness of Sinai. There on the mounting he meets the Lord.
The same thing we find in the Gospel. The disciples are overwhelmed with the fatigue of rowing throughout the whole night. The seemingly unsuccessful effort of the professional fisherman. They knew what to do. They did their best, yet they did not make any progress. The width of the lake of Galilee is only 8 miles. Nonetheless, they were struggling for more than six hours. It is at the end of the night, during the fourth watch – when the disciples, exhausted, would probably give up – that Jesus comes to them.
Overwhelmed by the struggle, anxiety, uncertainty, and maybe even losing their hope, the Lord comes to them. It is then when they hear I am (Mt 14:27). Elijah exhausted and frightened, alone on the mountain, hears the voice of the Lord (1 King 19:12-13). Let us pray sincerely that the Lord would help us to restructure our expectations and open widely our hearts and minds.