The fancy word that Biblical scholars use for an encounter with God is “theophany.” In the book of Exodus 19 there is a dramatic theophany at Mt. Sinai involving the whole Israelite community accompanied by earthquakes, smoke and fire, thunder and trumpet blast. In contrast, in the First Kings 19 Elijah has a theophany which explicitly excludes earthquake, volcano and hurricane. The encounter with God is found in a “tiny, whispering sound.” That should remind us that our own theophanies, our own encounters with God, will not fit into any pre-conceived package. God comes to us in different ways at different times. In prayer we must look through the externals of a particular event and find there how God reveals the divine presence to us today.
JULY272017
By Church Staff
