Peace be with you.
Day 7: Saturday of Silence
The Hidden Disciples—When God appears silent. (John 20:19-22)
John 20:19 NLT
That Sunday evening the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them! “Peace be with you,” he said.
Saturday was a strange day for the disciples. Friday had been the day of the cross. A day filled with pain, confusion, and tears. They had seen Jesus arrested, condemned, and crucified. Everything they had hoped for seemed to have ended in a sealed tomb.
Sunday would be the day of the resurrection. But they didn't know it yet.
Between those two moments lay Saturday: the day of silence.
The Gospels show us the disciples hiding, filled with fear and bewilderment. The dream they had built around Jesus seemed to have crumbled.
They had heard his words, they had seen his miracles, but at that moment they couldn't understand what God was doing.
Meanwhile, Jesus' body lay in the tomb, sealed by a large stone and guarded by Roman soldiers. To human eyes, everything seemed over. But heaven was working in silence.
What seemed like the end of the story was actually the beginning of the greatest miracle in history.
The Bible reminds us that God often works in ways that we cannot perceive at the time.
“8 'My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,' says the Lord. 'And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. 9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8–9 NLT
When God seems silent, it doesn't mean He has stopped working. Often, in those invisible moments, He is preparing something far greater than we can imagine. That is why the psalmist wrote:
“Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.” Psalm 27:14 NLT
God's silence doesn't mean absence. Sometimes it means a miracle is closer than we think.
"When it seems God is silent, He is often preparing something greater."
For the disciples, the Sabbath seemed like the end. But God was about to do something that would change history forever.
Even when we don't see what God is doing, God is still at work.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION:
Life also has its "Saturdays"—moments when we don't understand what's happening. But even in those moments, God continues to work.
Reflection questions: How do we react when we feel God is silent? What does the Sabbath teach us about patience and faith? Can we trust God even when we don't see what He is doing?
PRAYER:
Lord, help me to trust in You, even when I do not understand what is happening. Remind me that Your plans are always greater than what my eyes can see in the moment. Amen.
Take a few minutes to think about this and right your reflections in a notebook or in your notes app.