Nature has a rhythm which is both strange and familiar to us.  We are well aware of the changing seasons around us, and make appropriate adjustments for them.  But there are rhythms of nature that are unfamiliar to us.  Whilst some may be aware of the changing tides, there are still rhythms in the animal life, even in the winds and the rains, in the seasons of the life of a plant, that remain a mystery to us.  Why is it that some plants fare well some summers and not others?  As much as we are unaware of these rhythms, we are unaware of the heartbeat of God.

There are times in life when we truly question the presence of God, when we wonder at His silence, when we ponder His apparent impotence.  It seems that we are as aware of the heart of God as we are of the rhythms of nature.  I can only explain it by use of an analogy.

Even as you read this article, there are electronic waves passing in and around your body.  With the help of an appropriate device one can pick them up: radio signals, television transmission, telephone calls.  But one needs to tune into the correct frequency (or rhythm) in order to hear what is being transmitted.  These waves are there, without a doubt, but we are oblivious for lack of tuning in to their rhythm.

Perhaps the absence or impotence of God may at times better be described as our inability to tune into His rhythm, to know the ebb and flow of His work.  As much as we are ignorant of the rhythms of nature around us, we are ignorant of the work of God.  By getting in touch with nature's rhythms, we may better be prepared to hear the voice of God, or at least be aware of His presence.

November 19, 1995

 

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