You may have been told that you need to be quiet as a way of knowing God. Usually that meant shutting out noise and not being noisy yourself. Works well in a worship service to shut off all the instruments, quiet the vocals and let silence reign.
Very uncomfortable for people who live in a busy world.
Today I was reading about our shifting culture. In a day and age when worship services were mostly done through reading and music, this was an easy thing to accomplish.
Now, in a day and age when media is king, the newest concern is to be dark and know who God is. We have been so overcrowded with images and visual noise that we need to include darkness in our services.
At first I was adverse to the thought that we, the people of the light, would seek God in darkness. And I still struggle with this being a fad.
But, at the same time, I wonder how many of us close our eyes when we pray. If you have ever prayed with your eyes open, you know that there is a different feel to your prayers. When you go to the dark in prayer, there is a certain meditation and concentration that happens.
So, maybe there is something to this idea that in darkness we know God. What do you think?
I too think there is something about closing the eyes to “see” only God. I have sat in prayer with eyes open, and indeed there is a different, “distractedness” to the whole situation. On the idea that in darkness we know God, I think that in darkness (in our lives), we Need to know God and that maybe by being in darkness in our darknes we can know God better…just thinking. Gerald