Have you ever been in a place and you feel like standing up and shouting ‘Can’t everyone just keep quiet!!’ Shops are blaring music as if in a nightclub. I was in the hair dressers last week and felt my ear drums could burst with the music. Take a ride on the bus and you will be bombarded with music coming out of earphones. Think you can escape to a restaurant for some quiet reflection over some coffee and you will find there various types of music for your ‘entertainment’. Even waiting rooms have television on for fear that the quietness would keep us away.
With the development of technology we have access to music 24 hours a day. I’ve been thinking recently about the fact that we are bombarded with noise everywhere we go. Now you might think that I’m just being a humbug and that I should lighten-up but I’m being serious.
The other day, my son came home from school and said ‘Mum, why is it so quiet’? There was no TV on, no CD, no internet radio or YouTube video was playing. I told him that I was enjoying some reflection time and he laughed and went to put on the TV. Soon my tranquil environment was again transformed to the usual and familiar noise of cartoon jingles and adverts.
In fact psychologist George Hollich, from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind believes that children who grow up in noisy homes may have lower verbal skills. Theodore Wachs (1993) studied the level of “noise confusion” in the home and its impact on early childhood development. Wachs concluded that high levels of noise, crowding and traffic patterns in the home were associated with lower caregiver attentiveness and responsibility. Noise, it seems, can affect the temperament and social interactions of children. Just like adults, children need quiet time at home, to create, learn, relax and just “be”
Now let’s look at the same issue in a spiritual context. One of the most fundamental pillars of the Christian faith is that we must know the voice of God. The Holy Spirit can be whispering to us throughout the day but we have become so accustomed to noise that we are not listening. Our ‘quiet time’ is no longer quiet. We play a few worship songs as we sing along, we probably listen to an audio bible instead of reading it and then perhaps we watch our favorite devotional online. Now I’m not saying that there is anything wrong with these things, I just feel that we need more time to be quiet before the Lord and meditate on Scripture. There are three primary Hebrew words translated “meditate” in the Bible. Taking a look at them will help you develop a biblical definition. The first one (hagah) is found in Psalm 1:2 and means to murmur scripture pleasantly to yourself. The second one (higgayown) is found in Ps. 119:14 and means to repeat God’s Word musically. The third one (siychah) is found in Psalm 119:99 and means to reflect quietly with deep devotion, to thoughtfully utter scripture. As you go about your business this week, try to set aside a portion of time to just be quiet. Meditate on Scripture and allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you.
The word noise means a sound, especially one that is loud or unpleasant or that causes disturbance. As you go about your daily tasks try not to expose yourself to unpleasant noise which is meaningless and disturbing. Instead choose to listen to music and television programs that are edifying. Most importantly get to know God’s voice so that you will be able to distinguish His voice from all the others that we hear on a daily basis.
