Sometimes God crashes into your life and sometimes God sneaks into your life. We see the crashing variety in the account of Jesus walking on water. The twelve apostles we are told are terrified, they cried out in fear. They have been fighting for their lives against the storm, against the wind and the rain. After several hours of this they see someone walking on the sea. That lets them know there is something bigger than them at work. Boom. By contrast, Elijah experiences God sneaking into his life when he realizes that it is not the hurricane or the earthquake that reveals the divine presence. It is rather in the tiny whispering sound that he must find God. Shhhh. We unpack these stories to see the different ways God works in our own lives.
One puzzlement. What made Peter get out of the boat? It was a perfectly good boat. Sure it was being tossed about by waves but still a lot safer than being in the water. I know that there are some people that jump out of perfectly good airplanes with nothing but a parachute (which always struck me as a little out there) — but into a stormy sea. C’mon, Peter. You are a fisherman. You know how dangerous the water can be. What would make you take that step? The only answer: the invitation of Jesus. One word: “come.” And after that word we read “Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus.” The problem was he started to sink when he took his eyes off Jesus and instead noticed what a dangerous situation he was in. Our story is similar. We find ourselves hammered by stormy seas at times. A personal health crisis, a family in turmoil, the loss of a loved one can all provoke a storm of emotions. What we need to hear above that storm is the voice of Jesus saying to us, “Come. Come all you who labor and are heavy burdened. Come.” When we respond to that invitation and step out on the sea of faith the storms we are going through are no longer terrifying. We know that Jesus is with us in the storm. The example of Peter warns us, though, that during those times we have to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. We must keep faith with him who promised us, I will be with you always. We must remember that Jesus said, I will be with you in good times and in bad. We have to recall the wisdom of the ancestors demonstrating when the storms of life are raging Jesus stands with us. Yes, the storms are there – the illness, the trouble, the grief. But when we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus they do not overwhelm us. We know where the real power lies.
On the other hand, most of life is not characterized by major storms. Most of life is partly cloudy with occasional showers and drizzle. Not a big deal but something to cope with. We need to be able to find God in those things as well. Each day is punctuated with 86,400 seconds when we have the opportunity to either grow full of life or remain lost in strife. There are 86,400 opportunities every day to do something kind or to think “never mind.” We have 86,400 chances to become full of grace or to live the rat race. Nothing major but each decision determines how God is present to us.
The challenge that the scripture holds out to us is to learn how to listen to the tiny whispering call in a way that frees us up to step into the sea of God’s unknown future. What do we need to bring into our prayer so that we can heed the whisper. The tiny whispering sound holds the key to the will of God for us as individuals, for our community, and for St. James. Let me make three suggestions on how to listen to a whisper. First, to hear a whisper you must eliminate the background noise. You can’t hear a whisper when the band is playing, the drill is hammering, or the train is rolling past. It’s hard to hear the tiny whispering sound that is God’s will when old tapes are playing (“We’ve always done it that way”), when the drumbeat of past hurts keep echoing, when suspicions of the motives of others rumble through. Only after those noises have been silenced, at least most of the time, can we attend to the tiny whispering sound of God’s will in this situation.
Another help in listening to a whisper is to have others listen with you. “What’d he say?” Maybe what you don’t hear another will. That is why we have committees, councils, groups, classes, advisors. They are hearing something in the whisper that maybe we miss. And sharing together what these others hear in the tiny whispering sound opens up God’s will in a new way.
Finally, it helps to hear a whisper if you lean in closer to it. Those of us of a certain age might even cup our ear. Come closer, I can’t hear you. For us to hear the tiny whispering sound of God’s will for us, we must at time take a step forward. Maybe we’re not quite ready to step over the side of the boat – to trust completely in the plan God has for me. But we can move to the stern so we might hear the voice of the master say “come” a little more clearly. Maybe we can take that step by introducing yourself to someone you see all the time but don’t know by name. Maybe it means deciding that I can give of myself to help care for someone less fortunate. Maybe it means praying with someone who is hurting. Taking a step toward where God might be calling makes it easier to hear the tiny whispering sound.
“Lord, save me!” Peter cried when he began to sink. That cry is not meant for just the major crises but for all the daily providences of our life. Lord, save us from missing the daily opportunities you are placing before us. Lord, save us from staying stuck in a rut that limits our conversion. Lord, save us from not trusting what you can do with the likes of us so that we can truly hear your voice in the tiny whispering sound.