I had heard the recent weather forecast for snow and there was now a muffled silence beneath the layer of gray clouds that grew ever thicker and darker as the sun set further beneath the unseen horizon.  The forecasted snowstorm was certain to arrive soon, so my family and I settled in for a nice Sabbath meal followed by a family Bible study in front of a nice, warm fire.

After our study, I ventured out onto our front porch and saw that the snow had arrived. There were big, fluffy flakes coming down at a steady pace, yet I noticed something more. If I remained very quiet and still, I could actually hear the snow falling. I could hear a very tiny tinkling sound as the uncounted flakes impacted everything nearby.

This reminded me of Elijah's encounter with God, as told in 1 Kings 19:9-18. From his cave, Elijah witnessed three awesome events—a windstorm, an earthquake and a fire. Yet God was not in any of those awesome happenings. Elijah then heard a still, small voice—which he realized was the voice of God. The most powerful being in the universe had chosen to make Himself known to Elijah with nothing more than a mere whisper—offering words of encouragement during Elijah's time of loneliness and despair.

The following morning, my family and I awoke to a sunny yet quiet world. We witnessed the awesome power of the multitude of those tiny, fragiles snowflakes, as together they brought vehicle movement in our entire area to a grinding halt. So, too, can we be witnesses to God's awesome power if we will only allow Him to work within us, granting each of us peace, tranquility and comfort in this world of chaos.

Sometimes it seems that almost every day we are bombarded with some new disaster. Yet if we are only willing to be still and listen, we can hear God's still, small voice guiding us through the chaos of this life. It is in the midst of chaos and trials that it is most important for us to slow down, quiet our minds and seek out our loving Father who is more than willing to grant us His encouragement, comfort and peace. UN