Comer - He speaks in the silence: finding intimacy with god by learning to listen

Praise for He Speaks in the Silence

Ive known Diane and her husband Phil for yearssince their first date, actually. It was before marriage, before kids, and before her deafness set in. I have had the privilege and joy of watching her story play out and seeing God work in the midst. I have seen her live through the confusion and challenges of her deafness, digging deep into the inevitable questions it brings. She sees it as a story of failure. I see it as a story of triumphant faith. Trusting God in a storm is seldom simple and clean. More often than not, faith is messy, full of bumps and valleys and questions and heartache. And for Diane, her faith and relationship with her Creator has been shrouded in physical silence. I challenge you to read her story and not be moved. I have no doubt that her story will cause you to rethink your own understanding of God.

Luis Palau, world evangelist and author

Diane Comer captivates the reader as she describes in profound ways her sudden world of silence. Her prose is poetic. In a riveting manner, she tells of her journey from a normal life that heard chirping birds, falling rain, a babys coo, and a lovers whisper to one of silence. She went from hearing laughter among her girlfriends, the singing of her husband, and her child calling Mom" to a world on mute. Few of us ever think about the reality of absolute deafness, but Diane narrates so powerfully that we enter her soundless world. When she cries, we cry. When she doubts, we doubt. When her faith ignites, our faith ignites. Amazingly, along with her, we hear God in the silence. What did God say? He Speaks in the Silence answers that question. Oh, and find out why, when she regained her hearing through the miracle of science, she daily disconnects to reenter her world of silence.

Emerson and Sarah Eggerichs of Love and Respect Ministries, author of Love and Respect

If you have ever wondered (as most of us do) Does God see me? Does he want to talk to me? Is it possible for me to hear him speak? Dianes story, compellingly and beautifully told, gets to the nitty gritty reality of what it means to know God deeply and intimately in all the silence and the noise of lifes good days, hard days, and every days.

Dan and Becky Kimball, author of several books, pastor of Vintage Faith Church, and speaker

When I think back to my childhood, one memory sticks out over all the noise; every morning I would walk down the stairs and find my mom sitting in her chair, Bible open, pen in hand, eyes focused but distant. She was hearing the one voice that could bypass her deafness. My mom taught me how to listen to God; this book will do the same for you.

John Mark Comer, pastor for teaching and vision at Bridgetown: A Jesus Church in Portland, Oregon and author of Loveology and Garden City

He Speaks in the Silence is a beautiful read. Diane's unashamed vulnerability instantly draws you in and find yourself lost in her storyone where she freely admits her own insecurities and struggles with trust, faith, and understanding. Her honesty encourages you to seek and value silence, to make space to comprehend your own journey deeper, and to truly press into the One who speaks in that silence. It's about seeing beauty where there seems to be none, about believing through doubt, about pursuing a wild hope. I highly recommend this book!

Sarah A. Dubbeldam, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief and Creative Director, Darling Magazine

Diane Comers personal journey from disappointed good girl to deeply spiritual woman of God shows the power of the Spirits working in the midst of tragic loss when the eyes of faith opened deaf ears to hear the gently powerful voice of the LORD Most High. It will take you deep into intimacy with Him.

Gerry Breshears, Ph.D., Professor of Theology, Western Seminary, Portland, Oregon

ZONDERVAN

He Speaks in the Silence

Copyright 2015 by Diane Comer

ePub Edition November 2015: ISBN 978-0-310-34178-9

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zondervan, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Comer, Diane.

He speaks in the silence: finding intimacy with God by learning to listen / Diane Comer.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978-0-310-34179-6 (softcover)ISBN 978-0-310-34178-9 (ebook)ISBN 978-0-310-07022-1 (mobile app) 1. Christian womenReligious life. 2. SpiritualityChristianity. 3. Spiritual lifeChristianity. 4. ListeningReligious aspectsChristianity. 5. DeafnessReligious aspectsChristianity. I. Title.

BV4527.C6336 2016

248.86dc23

2015028432

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the King James Version. Public domain.

Scripture quotations marked NASB are from New American Standard Bible. Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

Scripture quotations marked NLT are from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by Zondervan, nor does Zondervan vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Published in association with William K. Jensen Literary Agency, 119 Bampton Court, Eugene, Oregon 97404.

Art direction: Curt Diepenhorst

Interior design: Kait Lamphere

First printing November 2015

For Phil.

You have loved me through it all.

And for

John Mark, Rebekah, Elizabeth, and Matthew.

This is the whole story.

Contents

1. In the Beginning
... a story I didnt want

2. A Keeper of Rules
... a story that wasnt real

3. The Fear and the Fury
... a story fraught with danger

4. The Beautiful No
... a story I didnt deserve

5. Where the Rubber Meets the Road
... a story of learning the hard way

6. Treasures in the Darkness
... a story of beauty in brokenness

7. Leaning In
... a story of letting go

8. Alluring Me to Listen
... a story about intimacy

9. The Sound of Rain
... a story of His presence

10. A Heart to Hear
... a story for you too

I live in a world of silence.

Surrounded by sound, I hear nothing.

Not a chirp or a chime or a rustle in the wind. No bells or rings or banging or blaring. When the doorbell rings and the dog barks, I cannot hear. When the smoke detector shrills in protest at the whiff of a scorched meal left too long to simmer, I putter heedlessly on.