(Below is an excerpt from Pastor’s book, “How to Find Life in Dead Situations”)
Sometimes God’s silence is a good thing. We have a little problem in that we think we have to understand why everything happens. I am here to tell you, there are some things for which we do not have the answers. Only God has the answer. I remember when my precious Bible school friend, Sam Smith’s young son passed away in his sleep. He was only 25 years of age, a body builder, strong, handsome and just going to his first pastorate. That was a rough one. No one knew he had any disease. Dr. Kenneth Hagin and I were the two that conducted that memorial service and I will never forget the wisdom that Dr. Hagin spoke on that occasion. He spoke from Deuteronomy 29:29 that the secret things belong unto the Lord. There are some things we will never know until we are in the presence of God and there are other things that God does choose to reveal. I have certain things that God has spoken to me, but in other areas there is silence. I have found out that when God speaks – listen, but do not try to break the silence of God. Sometimes God is quiet. Sometimes the greatest men and women of God throughout the Bible did not hear from God at the moment they desired. They eventually did, but it is not wise to try to force a word from God.
In John 11:6, when Jesus had heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where He was and it was four days until He finally arrived on the scene. Why? It is none of our business! There is one thing that you can believe; it is all going to come out all right. I would rather Jesus take four days and everything come out all right than we force something prematurely and mess things up. Everything is beautiful in God’s time (Ecclesiastes 3:11). God is going to work everything out that you have truly committed into His hands. I see people getting antsy and taking action when they should be waiting and listening. When this happens people can really mess up their life and sometimes someone else’s. Even the sisters of Lazarus sent a message to Jesus saying, “. . . behold, he whom thou lovest is sick.” They were trying to put the pressure on Him, yet Jesus stayed away two days. Sometimes God is vocal; sometimes He is silent. “Then when Jesus came, he found that he had lain in the grave four days already” (John 11:17).
There have been times that I wanted to see God act and it just did not happen at that time. Some things happened later, just not when I expected. A number of years ago I was crying out to God for something that I thought God had missed a glorious opportunity to do immediately. God spoke to my heart and said, “I am going to do it. And if you will just be patient, I am not only going to bless you, but I am going to bless five other people in the process.” Now isn’t that better for God to be able to bless five other people in the process than for me to get what I wanted from God? See, this is very practical, and it is very wonderful. God’s timing is important. We just need to let go and let God have His wonderful way!
Do not try to break the silence of God, but also never forget that Jesus really does love and Jesus really does care. In fact, the shortest expression in the Word of God is John 11:35, “Jesus wept.” Somehow we think that Jesus was not capable of that, but Jesus wept. The Bible also tells us that on two different occasions, He groaned. His heart was touched. Maybe in Lazarus’ case He was touched because of the grief that surrounded the situation. Maybe He was touched because of the sisters and the fellowship He had enjoyed in their home. I do not know what all the motivations were. Maybe His weeping and groaning were because of the unbelief that surrounded Him. Whatever the case may be you really have to believe that Jesus does love and care.