Fast Day 14: When God is Quiet

By Breanna Storms

“After these days, his wife Elizabeth conceived, and lived for five months she kept herself hidden.” - Luke 1:24 ESV

“Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.” - Luke 1:45 ESV

“Now the child grew and was becoming strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance in Israel.” - Luke 1:80 ESV

“But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.” - Luke 2:19 ESV

Luke opens his Gospel wrapped in silence. There is the long silence of history—what many believe was roughly four hundred years since God last spoke through a prophet. There is the silence of Zechariah, struck unable to speak while God proves Himself faithful. There is the chosen silence of Elizabeth, who withdraws while God rewrites her story. There is the quiet spiritual growing of John in the wilderness, unseen and unheard. Even Mary speaks little, choosing instead to treasure and ponder what she does not yet understand in her heart. Over and over, Luke draws our attention not to noise, but to restraint. John becomes “strong in spirit” not in the spotlight, but in obscurity. Before he becomes a voice crying out, he lives years without one. Luke wants us to see that God often prepares His work in silence—forming faith, obedience, and trust long before public purpose appears. Silence in Luke is never empty. It is full of waiting, listening, and hidden faithfulness. God is not absent; He is deliberate. The greatest announcement the world has ever known begins not with shouting, but with stillness.

Luke shows us that faith does not require constant confirmation or commentary. Mary’s belief is steady and silent. She trusts that God will do what He said, even when the fulfillment unfolds slowly and quietly. This is the kind of faith Luke honors—a faith that holds onto God’s promise without demanding immediate evidence or recognition.

Invitation

If God’s promises feel slow or quiet right now, know you are not forgotten.
Faith may look like believing before seeing—and waiting without speaking.

Take a moment to sit with these questions: 

Where in my life is God inviting me to trust Him without immediate answers?

Am I trying to explain or control what God is still quietly forming?

What promise of God am I holding, even though I cannot yet see its fulfillment?

What would it look like for me to believe—without rushing the outcome?