November 24

“Be still, and know that I am God” (Ps. 46:10)

Is there any note of music in all the chorus as mighty¹ as the emphatic² pause? Is there any word in all the Psalter more eloquent³ than that one word, Selah (Pause)? Is there anything more thrilling and awful than the hush⁴ that comes before the bursting of the tempest and the strange quiet that seems to fall upon all nature before some preternatural phenomenon or convulsion? Is there anything that can touch our hearts as the power of stillness?

There is for the heart that will cease from itself, “the peace of God that passeth all understanding,”(Phil.4:6)a “quietness and confidence”(Is.30:15) which is the source of all strength, a sweet peace “which nothing can offend,” a deep rest which the world can neither give nor take away. There is in the deepest center of the soul a chamber⁵ of peace where God dwells, and where, if we will only enter in and hush every other sound, we can hear His still, small voice.

There is in the swiftest wheel that revolves⁶ upon its axis⁷ a place in the very center, where there is no movement at all; and so in the busiest life there may be a place where we dwell alone with God, in eternal stillness, There is only one way to know God. “Be still, and know.”“God is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him.”(Hag.2:20) ━Selected

“All-loving Father, sometimes we have walked under starless skies that dripped darkness like drenching⁸ rain. We despaired of starshine or moonlight or sunrise. The sullen⁹ blackness gloomed above us as if it would last forever. And out of the dark there spoke¹⁰ no soothing¹¹ voice to mend our broken hearts. We would gladly have welcomed some wild thunder peal¹² to break the torturing stillness of that over-brooding night.”

“But Thy winsome¹³ whisper of eternal love spoke more sweetly to our bruised¹⁴ and bleeding souls than any winds that breathe across Aeolian harps¹⁵. It was Thy 'still small voice' that spoke to us. We were listening and we heard. We looked and saw Thy face radiant with the light of love. And when we heard Thy voice and saw Thy face, new life came back to us as life comes back to withered¹⁶ blooms that drink the summer rain.” ━Selected

十一月二十四日

「你们要安静，要知道我是神。」 （诗四十六:10/直译）

音乐谱中能不能漏去休止符呢？诗篇中能不能漏去「细拉」呢？如果不能的话，人生也不能漏去安静。世上没有一件东西能像「安静」那样摸着我们的心。

只有在安静的时候，我们纔能得到「神所赐出人意外的平安」（腓四:7）；纔能得到「平静安稳」（赛卅:15）━得力的来源；纔能得到世界所不能给与，不能夺去的安息；纔能听见神微小的声音。

在轴上旋转得最快的车轮，它的中心有一个地方，是一无动静的；照样，在我们最忙碌的生活，我们的灵里仍能顶安静地与神单独亲近的。「耶和华在祂的圣殿中。全地的人，都当在他面前肃敬静默。」（哈二:20）━选

慈爱的父阿，有时我们在无星之夜行走，四围全是黑暗；前面既没有星光，又没有月光。惨淡的黑暗似乎永远不会退去了。

在这样的沉寂中，祢柔和的微声安慰了我们流血的心。我们听见了祢微小的声音，看见了祢焕发的慈容，我们的生命就新鲜得如同枯萎的花儿饮了雨露一般。━选

1 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

2 emphatic   

adj.强调的，着重的；无可置疑的，明显的

参考例句：

• Their reply was too emphatic for anyone to doubt them.他们的回答很坚决，不容有任何人怀疑。
• He was emphatic about the importance of being punctual.他强调严守时间的重要性。

3 eloquent   

adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的

参考例句：

• He was so eloquent that he cut down the finest orator.他能言善辩，胜过最好的演说家。
• These ruins are an eloquent reminder of the horrors of war.这些废墟形象地提醒人们不要忘记战争的恐怖。

4 hush   

int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静

参考例句：

• A hush fell over the onlookers.旁观者们突然静了下来。
• Do hush up the scandal!不要把这丑事声张出去！

5 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

6 revolves   

v.（使）旋转( revolve的第三人称单数 )；细想

参考例句：

• The earth revolves both round the sun and on its own axis. 地球既公转又自转。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Thus a wheel revolves on its axle. 于是，轮子在轴上旋转。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 axis   

n.轴，轴线，中心线；坐标轴，基准线

参考例句：

• The earth's axis is the line between the North and South Poles.地轴是南北极之间的线。
• The axis of a circle is its diameter.圆的轴线是其直径。

8 drenching   

n.湿透v.使湿透( drench的现在分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体）

参考例句：

• A black cloudburst was drenching Siena at midday. 中午，一场天昏地暗的暴风雨在锡耶纳上空倒下来。 来自辞典例句
• A drenching rain poured down and the rising hurricane drove it in sheets along the ground. 一阵倾盆大雨泼下来了，越来越大的狂风把它顺着地面刮成了一片一片的雨幕。 来自辞典例句

9 sullen   

adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的

参考例句：

• He looked up at the sullen sky.他抬头看了一眼阴沉的天空。
• Susan was sullen in the morning because she hadn't slept well.苏珊今天早上郁闷不乐，因为昨晚没睡好。

10 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

11 soothing   

adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的

参考例句：

• Put on some nice soothing music.播放一些柔和舒缓的音乐。
• His casual, relaxed manner was very soothing.他随意而放松的举动让人很快便平静下来。

12 peal   

n.钟声；v.鸣响

参考例句：

• The bells of the cathedral rang out their loud peal.大教堂响起了响亮的钟声。
• A sudden peal of thunder leaves no time to cover the ears.迅雷不及掩耳。

13 winsome   

n.迷人的，漂亮的

参考例句：

• She gave him her best winsome smile.她给了他一个最为迷人的微笑。
• She was a winsome creature.她十分可爱。

14 bruised   

[医]青肿的，瘀紫的

参考例句：

• his bruised and bloodied nose 他沾满血的青肿的鼻子
• She had slipped and badly bruised her face. 她滑了一跤，摔得鼻青脸肿。

15 harps   

abbr.harpsichord 拨弦古钢琴n.竖琴( harp的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She continually harps on lack of money. 她总唠叨说缺钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He could turn on the harps of the blessed. 他能召来天使的竖琴为他奏乐。 来自辞典例句

16 withered   

adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The grass had withered in the warm sun. 这些草在温暖的阳光下枯死了。
• The leaves of this tree have become dry and withered. 这棵树下的叶子干枯了。