A Roaring Silence

“We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls.” - Mother Teresa

Recently, I've come to discover a fast more trying and hard than fasting food - and in some ways, more rewarding. Currently, the Lord has called me to a 7 day speech fast. I've never done a speech fast for more than a day before, and even then horribly messed it up, so this is definitely a new thing for me. As I'm writing this, I am in the middle of day 6. I didn't create this blog to toot my own horn, I created this as a resource for people wondering about speech fasts, and what the point of them is, and whether or not it's a Biblical thing to do, and what the rewards therein are, as well as personal revelation that I received out of the experience.

It is interesting how much idle talk one can find in himself when he actually ceases to speak. For the past few days, I have secluded myself in the form of speech to God alone. I have found this a very difficult thing to do, as pretty much everything around me is screaming out words, words, words. Our entire world is centered around noise. Babble, talk, what-have-you. It is no wonder so many people have such a hard time connecting to God - they don't give Him time to speak back to them. They're (I'm including myself in this) too busy talking about everything and anything, whether it's corrupted speech or pure.

It's amazing how much judgment, strife, anxiety, anger, and sin is born out of simple talk. Conversations seem to be centered around the glorifying of oneself, or another, or the anti-glorification of each. I have noticed this in myself all too much in the past few days - so much so that it absolutely disgusts me. I find myself in conversations that I want to pipe up and include myself in, only afterward seeing how pointless it would have been, or even harmful, if I had actually included myself in the conversation. I've found my hearing more tuned since I cannot speak - and I actually pay attention to the words that most others speak, and more times than not they are rash, rude, and have self-seeking intentions. And it's nothing against those people, because I find it just as much in my own speech now that I've quieted myself down for a little while. So much strife and pain can be instantly stilled by simple silence.

I find it no wonder that the desert fathers were so close to God - they understood the virtue of silence, and even praised it as the safest way to God and salvation:

"I have often repented of having spoken, but never of having remained silent." - Arsenius

The Desert Fathers found three things that were most meaningful in finding God: seclusion, silence, and prayer. Out of these three things, they were able to birth much fruit-bearing ministry, and guided many people, even to this day, in the ways of salvation. The most frequent argument they found for silence is simply that words lead to sin. In the teachings of the Desert Fathers, there are three key aspects of silence that they discovered:

1. Silence makes us pilgrims.

2. Silence guards the fire within.

3. Silence teaches us to speak.

The apostle James had it well-figured out in the New Testament:

"If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless." - James 1:26

"And if one does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body." - James 3:2

That was a huge wake-up call for myself. It's not that I had never heard those scriptures before, but that they were finally able to resonate in my soul because of my silence. Just as if I put a bit in a horse's mouth and it obeys me; if I am able to control my tongue, I can control my entire body. I always wondered why so often I struggle with lust and so many other sinful desires, and though I know speech is not the only area, I've now found it to be a huge stronghold!

Here is an interesting quote I found in Henry Nouwen's book, The Way of the Heart, from a Taoist philosopher:

The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish and when the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten. The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits. When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten. The purpose of the word is to convey ideas. When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten. Where can I find a man who has forgotten words? He is the one I would like to talk to.

I've been looking for scriptures that talk about speech, the bridling of the tongue and otherwise, and I found the most results to be in King Solomon's teachings. This is no surprise, as one would assume that the wisest man to ever live would have the tongue well figured out. I tried searching on the internet for a resource of scriptures pertaining to speech fasting, and I couldn't find any, so I also made this list (at the bottom of this blog) as an open resource for people. I thank Jesus for teaching me the ways of silence, Henry Nouwen for his wonderful book, The Way of the Heart, and Solomon and James, for their wisdom.

Lastly, I want to encourage anyone and everyone to challenge themselves in their speech. It is evident to me that if you don't actually do something, like silencing yourself for a specific period of time, then you cannot change the way you talk. Think about it, you've been talking for your entire life, even making noises as a baby. Talking goes without even thinking half of the time - until you actually stop the noisy flow coming from your mouth. A speech fast can be done anywhere and everywhere - trust me, even my position requires me to talk to people. I'm a designer, and have to talk to clients about my work, and what they want, and get advice from my superiors, etc. You can still talk - just keep it work-related only. Every other form of speech can be silenced, and you only talk when you know it's absolutely necessary. Trust me, it's worth it. Half the time I've been in this fast, it felt like I was even fasting food, although I wasn't - I reaped the same rewards, and even more.

I think, for the first time, I actually know how to speak.

Jarrod

Psalm 39:1 - "I will keep a muzzle on my mouth... I will watch how I behave and not let my tongue lead me into sin."
Ecclesiastes 3:7 - "A time to keep silence, and a time to speak."
Ecclesiastes 4:6 - "Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of toil and striving after the wind."
Ecclesiastes 5:1-7 - "To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they know not they are doing evil. Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in Heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. For a dream comes with much business, and a fool's voice with many words... Let your mouth not lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice and destroy the work of your hands?"
Ecclesiastes 6:11 - "The more words, the more vanity, and what is the advantage to man?"
Ecclesiastes 10:12 - "The words of a wise man's mouth win him favor, but the lips of a fool consume him."
Proverbs 2:12 - "My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your ear to understanding..."
Proverbs 4:19 - "Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you."
Proverbs 8:7 - "For my mouth will utter truth; wickedness is an abomination to my lips."
Proverbs 10:11, 13, 19 - "The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life... on the lips of him who has understanding, wisdom is found... When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent."
Proverbs 11:4 - "With his mouth the godless man would destroy his neighbor, but by knowledge the righteous are delivered."
Proverbs 13:3 - "Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips come to ruin."
Proverbs 14:3 - "By the mouth of a fool comes a rod for his back, but the lips of the wise will preserve them."
Proverbs 15:1-2 - "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouths of fools pour out folly."
Proverbs 15:4 - "A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit."
Proverbs 16:32 - "Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city."
Proverbs 17:27-28 - "Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent."
Proverbs 18:7-8 - "A fool's mouth is his ruin and his lips are a snare to his soul. The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels; they go down deep."
Proverbs 18:21 - "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat of its fruits."
James 1:26 - "If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless."
James 3:2 - "And if one does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body."