Article November 23, 1987 Issue

What are you listening for?

Even in the middle of turmoil and violence, we can hear the "still small voice" the Bible promises.

Jennifer Enid le Grange

I Live in a country where there has been a surge of political unrest, violence, and terrorism. As a result I ponder often Christ Jesus' promise "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."^{John 14:27.} I have had to pray a great deal in order to see this promised peace in my own life and to see greater peace and order in the lives of my countrymen.

My home is close to an area where violence often erupts. In the beginning when I heard arms fire, I would stop in my tracks and listen. Fear would grip me, and I'd wonder what the outcome would be for those caught in the middle. Then one day this thought brought me up short: What are you listening for?

Was I listening to hear the clamor and violence that the physical senses were reporting, or was I listening for the "still small voice"^{I Kings 19: 12.} of God, Truth? I had been praying to find peace, Christly peace, but instead of responding to God's communication, I was often reacting to the material scene with its violence and hate, letting fear dominate my thought.