By Dr. Verlyn Fontaine Waterman | Who Is She! Blog
There comes a time in every believer’s journey when the familiar rhythms of faith—prayer, worship, fasting—seem to yield no response.
You have poured out your heart. You’ve clung to every promise. You’ve waited with bated breath. And yet… the silence lingers.
But this silence is not just the absence of sound. It’s the ache that follows fervent prayers. It’s the stillness that shadows sleepless nights. It’s the quiet space where hope begins to tremble and questions start to rise.
I’ve been there. I’m still there. Not in doubt, but in deep, bone-wearied exhaustion. Not in rebellion, but in desperate surrender. I have cried. I have waited. I have believed—and still, the heavens remain quiet.
I know God is faithful. I know His promises are yes and amein. But I’ve come to learn that “yes” doesn’t always mean “now”—and “amein” doesn’t always come with answers. Nowhere in Scripture did He say the journey would be loud. But I didn’t expect silence.
This is the sacred tension where the book “When God Seems Silent” begins. Not with resolution, but with rawness. Not with triumph, but with truth.
This is not a book filled with easy answers. It’s a companion for the silent nights and the questioning days. It’s a hand reaching through the darkness to remind you:
You are not being punished. You are being prepared.
God’s silence is not the evidence of His absence. It is the womb of transformation.
What if the silence is not a rejection—but a sacred refinement? What if He is doing His deepest work not in the noise of breakthroughs, but in the stillness of your surrender?
10 Steps to Sustain Faith While You Wait in Silence
If you’re walking through a season of divine stillness, here are ten truths and actions that can help you endure, trust, and grow:
1. Acknowledge the Silence Without Shame
It’s okay to admit you feel forgotten. God is not offended by your honesty—He welcomes it. (Psalm 13:1–2)
2. Anchor Yourself in What You Know, Not Just What You Feel
Feelings fluctuate. Truth doesn’t. Remind yourself daily of God’s nature, not your emotional state. (Hebrews 10:23)
3. Reframe Waiting as Worship
Waiting isn’t wasted time—it’s sacred space. Worship while you wait. It keeps your spirit aligned with God’s heart. (Isaiah 40:31)
4. Resist the Temptation to Create Your Own Answers
When silence stretches long, it’s tempting to “help God out.” But premature solutions often lead to prolonged pain. (Genesis 16)
5. Write What God Has Already Said
Keep a journal of past prayers answered, Scriptures spoken, and promises received. When new words are silent, old ones still speak. (Habakkuk 2:2–3)
6. Surround Yourself with Faith Carriers
Find those who can carry you in prayer when you’re too tired to lift your own voice. Community sustains belief. (Mark 2:3–5)
7. Revisit Biblical Stories of Waiting
Abraham, Joseph, Hannah, David—none were strangers to divine delays. Their stories reveal that waiting is often the path to destiny. (Romans 15:4)
8. Speak Life, Even in the Silence
Your words frame your perspective. Declare truth out loud even when you don’t feel it. Speak faith until it grows again. (Proverbs 18:21)
9. Submit to the Refining Process
Silence is often the furnace where impurities rise. Let God prune and purify. This season is preparing you for weightier glory. (John 15:2)
10. Remember That Jesus Understands
Even Jesus experienced the silence of the Father in Gethsemane and on the cross. You are not alone in this. (Matthew 27:46)
Final Thought:
You may feel abandoned, but you are not. You may feel overlooked, but you are seen. You may feel forsaken, but you are held.
When God seems silent, He is often speaking the loudest—in the language of transformation, trust, and tenderness.
Let’s walk this journey together. Let’s find purpose in the silence and hope in the waiting. Because even when you hear nothing… He is still God.
Dr. Verlyn