And after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.

1Kings 19:12

Only in the silence of all flesh can the still, small voice be heard. A large part of the difficulty experienced by Christians in hearing the voice of the Lord arises from the absence of this inward stillness.

Our own internal clamor drowns His quiet speaking. We listen for His voice in the wind and in the earthquake, expecting their thunder to sound above all our own clamoring; and because we are disappointed, we complain that He does not speak at all, when all the while the still small voice of His love is waiting for the quiet in which it can be heard.

I am convinced that there are many at this moment hungering for the voice of the Lord, who would hear it at once if they would but be silent before Him for a little while. This is the foundation thought of the silent meetings of the Quaker Friends, even though it may be that their outward stillness does not always secure the perfect inward stillness that is the vital thing.

All the saints of old have insisted upon stillness as a necessity of true communion with God and have exhorted their followers to cultivate it, and every saint of the pressent day knows its value.

Hannah Whitall Smith