Tchividjian Gigi - A Quiet Knowing

A QUIET KNOWING

Copyright 2001, Ruth Bell Graham and Gigi Graham Tchividjian.

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

Published by W Publishing Group, a Division of Thomas Nelson. Inc., P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, Tennessee 37214.

Cover painting "Psalm 1 " and tapestry by Kathy Hastings.
From the C D . "A Quiet KnowingCanticles For The Heart"
by Jeff Johnson & Brian Dunning with John Fitzpatrick (AKD-1504)
www.arkmusic.com 2000 D&K Studios/Ark Records, Inc.

Information concerning A Quiet Knowing, the book, music CD, video, conference curriculum, conferences, and concerts, as well as other books by Gigi Graham Tchividjian and Ruth Bell Graham can be found at the following internet address:

www.quietknowing.com

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations used in this book are from The Holy Bible, New International Version, copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. Other Scripture quotations are from the following sources: The King James Version of the Bible (KJV). The New King James Version (NKJV). copyright 1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson. Inc., Publishers. The Amplified New Testament (AMP), copyright 1954, 1958, The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.

Book jacket design by Patton Brothers Design, San Diego. CA (www.pattonbros.com)

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data applied for.
ISBN 0-8499-1676-3

Printed in the United States of America

01 02 03 04 05 06 QWK 6 5 4 3 2 1

CONTENTS

T he fruit of righteousness will be peace;
the effect of righteousness will be
quietness and confidence forever.

ISAIAH32:17

A Quiet
knowing

Scripture tells us, in the words of Isaiah, that "the fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever"(32:17). With our self-reliance deeply shaken by the events of September 11, 2001 , that "confidence forever" is what I refer to as a quiet knowing. It's t h e deep knowledge inside that you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. And n u r t u r i n g this that "passeth all understanding" (Phil. 4:7 Kjv).

A quiet knowing is also a sense of serenity. Most people I know are desperately searching for a sense of serenity. Serenity is that inner peace that conies with the certainties of knowing in whom you believe, what you believe, who you are, and where you're going.

It was said of Mother Teresa that she was blessed with certainties. I think that could also be said of my mother, Ruth Bell Graham. She is certain of who she is because she is certain of the One who loves her, the One in Whom she has put her faith. She's been able to pass that certainty on to her children. And I, as her eldest, am so grateful that she passed that certainty on to me.

Recently, Mother and I were sitting in her bedroom, she in her "ledge of quiet" (a comfortable overstuffed chair by the bay window) and I in the wingback chair beside the open fire, discussing the meaning of this little phrase, "a quiet knowing," taken from one of her poems.

We agreed that for us, "a quiet knowing" is, as the old hymn says, the "blessed assurance, [that] Jesus is mine." It is knowing that all is well between God and me, that "all is well with my soul."

The Greek word translated "peace" in the New Testament is a much more complex and comprehensive word than the one we use. It does not mean simply absence of trouble, but total well-being. It includes everything (all the ingredients, the experiences, and the pieces that God allows into our lives) that makes for our highest good. A quiet knowing is what we experience when we are aware of this fact.

Through the years, Mother has shared many of her own personal struggles, doubts, and cares with her pen through her poetry. The title A Quiet Knowing is taken from the following poem:

Sunk in this gray
depression
I cannot pray.
How can I give
expression
when there're no words
to say?
This mass of vague
foreboding
of aching care,
fear with its
overloading
short-circuits prayer.
Then in this fog
of tiredness,
this nothingness I find
a quiet knowing
that He is kind.

RUTH BELL GRAHAM

"A quiet knowing" comes through a personal relationship and deep intimacy with God through Jesus Christ. It is the confidence that we have in Him that He is in all and above all, that everything He does and allows in our lives is for our good and for His glory. It is being always and forever conscious of His encircling presence.

We trust that as you share with us the following pages, you will begin to acquaint yourself with Him in a very personal way and that you will experience a new level of intimacy with Him so that you, too, can participate in the certainties of A Quiet Knowing.

W here is God mu Maker,
who gives songs in the night?

JOB 3 5 : 10

Lo,the very haris He numbers
And no daily care encumbers,
Them that share His every blessing,
And His help in woes distressing.

Children
of the
Heavenly
Father

DEALING
WITH
DAILY C
ARES

As a small child, I often went into Mother's room at night, where I would find her still up reading her Bible or maybe on her knees praying. However, I'm sure there were many nights when she could cry out with Job, "Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night?" (35:10).

Mother was alone much of the time. And although she knew that it was worth the price because what Daddy was doing was important from eternity's perspective, it didn't alleviate the pain of loneliness. In fact, she said she would often get one of Daddy's jackets out of the closet and sleep with it when her loneliness became too much.

Mother has always believed in the all-sufficiency of God. And she has always relied on the authority and encouragement of Scripture to help her through her days and nights. Mother found, in Christ, the strength and sufficiency she needed to get through the dark and lonely nights as well as the difficult days as a "single mom." She has experienced firsthand what the old hymn says, that our Lord "no daily care encumbers them that share His every blessing and His help in woes distressing." This unswerving trust in the goodness and sufficiency of God she has passed on to each of her children.

We all experience difficult timestimes when the ache of loneliness just won't go away, when sadness overwhelms us, or when anxious thoughts keep us awake long into the night. It was probably on such a night that Mother penned the following words:

"Give me your nights, "
the quiet voice
of God said to my
pressured heart.
Wakeful and fretting
I knew I had the
choice:
For me the easy) or
the better part?

Nights are for sleeping,
one of His kindest gifts
Which, if He withholds
is for a special reason,

Some work the daylight
some the midnight shift
Could nights become
for me a special season?

"Give me your nights";
His voice unheard
spoke again. And my heart
sleepless, stirred,
listened in silence