No words

God has put before Job a series of pictures of Creation, reminding Job of who God is and who he is. God has posed a series of questions, challenging Job to explain some of the mysteries of the universe.

And now God turns to Job. He confronts Job directly –

“Now what do you have to say for yourself?
Are you going to haul me, the Mighty One, into court and press charges?”  Job 40:1-2 (The Message)

We may not ever have been in exactly the same situation as Job, but I’m sure we’ve all had times where we’ve demanded answers. We feel we have a right to an explanation. We deserve to know what’s going on. We are uncomfortable with uncertainty. We don’t know what to do with our unanswered questions. We’re caught up in a whirlwind of trying to make sense of it all. Unable to rest. Unable to find peace. Going over and over it all. Round and round in circles.

It’s almost as if we feel we have a right to know. A right to understand. We get angry if we feel others are keeping details from us. We get frustrated if we feel God is hiding something. This is how Job has been feeling with God. And now God has revealed to him just who God is and who Job is in comparison. He has reminded Job of his place in the universe. And now He’s interested to see what Job has to say for himself. Whether he will continue to question God. Whether he still feels able to put God on trial. Whether he is still determined to demand an explanation.

And this is Job’s response –

I’m speechless, in awe—words fail me.
I should never have opened my mouth!
I’ve talked too much, way too much.
I’m ready to shut up and listen.  Job 40:3-5 (The Message)

I find it truly wonderful. Job has been silenced by God. By being reminded of who God is and what He has done. By realising that God is infinitely more – in every respect – than any human can ever imagine or aspire to. It’s not about feeling worthless and putting himself down and being crushed by his inferiority. This isn’t about job feeling like a wretched worm and concentrating on his own inadequacy. It’s about focusing on God. On how incredible God is. When we focus on God and his marvellous creation, it should render us speechless. We should be in awe. We shouldn’t be able to find the words to express our wonder.

If we truly reflect on an aspect of God’s creation – any aspect – it will render us speechless. It will take our breath away. If we can only lift our eyes from our pain and confusion and look up to the skies, the voices in our head will be silenced. We will find a peace in resting in our place in the universe.

We are so quick to talk. Question. Work through our confusions. Go round and round. Strive for an explanation. And there is a place for that. I’m not saying we can’t talk through things. Better out than in, and all that. But sometimes there is too much talk. Sometimes we cover the same ground over and over and over again without finding any peace, any resolutions. Sometimes we get to the point where there are no more answers to be found, no more explanations to be given. We have to find a way to live with not knowing.

At the end of our words, there is awe. At the end of our questions, there is wonder. At the end of our confusion, there is God. It says in Psalm 121:1 –

I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from?

Because sometimes lifting our eyes is all that is left to do. Raising our eyes from our problems and suffering and focussing on the mountains before us. Reminding ourselves of God’s great power and magnificence. Maybe the help is just that. Not solutions. Not answers. Not explanations. But no words. Just awe. Some sort of peace that God is God and God knows what He is doing.

I was thinking of the Matt Redman song ‘Let my words be few’, but actually this one that I’ve never heard before comes from the perfect place for this blog. In an interview ‘5 minutes with…Matt Redman’, he’s asked what his favourite song that he has written is –

‘You never let go’ because we’ve had so much response. We wrote the song out of a real hard time – Beth [Matt’s wife] just had her fourth miscarriage in a row and we had a friend that week we thought was going to die. It seems to have connected with other people’s pain and struggle.

It is perfect. Says all that I’ve been trying to say. Listen to it – click on this link – ‘You never let go’.

I will let my words be few. I will hold on.

Because you never let go of me.