Song of Silence - When Our Identity Shatters
Song of Silence by Cynthia Ruchti (Abingdon Press sent me a copy of this book in exchange for my humble opinion) is about dreams and identity shattered. Lucy knows her calling in life, is comfortable in the familiarity of it, and is fighting to hold on tight. But sometimes dreams shatter in order for God to reach us in our brokenness.
I don’t know about you, but I get pretty tied up in my profession. It is a big part of who I am. For a long time, I struggled with my calling. I let other voices tell me that Pastoral Ministry was not an appropriate calling for a woman, that somehow I was misunderstanding the call on my life. It is only recently that I have found the freedom to pursue what I have always felt called to.
Writing is my therapy. Ministry is my calling. Both have given me a means to help others, to restore broken community and spirits, to share Christ and to love my neighbors more fully. I can’t imagine a life without either.
I read Song of Silence months ago and adored it. It stuck with me. Lucy’s story is nothing like mine. She’s facing retirement and her children are off to college. Lucy’s story is exactly like mine, full of loss and heartache, a searching to find her place in a world that doesn’t always make sense. I couldn’t wait to share Ruchti’s newest book with you but instead, I found a place of silence all my own.
Song of Silence - When Grief Overwhelms
Grief hit our family and the words stopped. I didn’t know what to say about anything. I was heart broken and lost picking up the shattered hearts of my children amidst my own questions and disbelief. It was a heartache that Lucy was also familiar with. Depression seemed to loom over my household.
As we began to move painfully forward I found myself in the midst of doubt. I think it is when we are the most wounded that attacks come at us in full force. I stopped writing, partly because the words were hard, mostly because I did not want those who were attacking to misunderstand anything I was writing and twist it into malicious intent. I found my own voice silenced.
Lucy’s passion was tied up in her music just as mine is tied up in my calling. A few years back I found myself in a place where I could not move forward that the best response was to walk away no matter how broken it made me. I burned out from ministry and took a forced sabbatical to refresh and refocus. I soon felt the tug back into ministry and have been actively obeying that call since. But suddenly all those ugly moments that broke me in the last ministry position struck again, the passive aggressive attacks on my character and work ethic to name a few, and I wanted to pack my bags and run. But this time was different. I don’t know why, maybe because I’m still in the midst of it, but I’m finding my voice. It’s not the same voice that I started this journey with. By page 314 Lucy has found a new voice, one that brought just as much if not more beauty into her world, and I’m holding onto hope that I will too.
Usually, when I read a book I connect with the characters because of situations I have already been through. This time, the book spoke to me before the life lessons came. I can only claim God’s timing and Ruchti’s amazing way with words.
Song of Silence - An Interview with the Author
You can listen to an interview with Cynthia Ruchti and learn more about Song of Silence here:
Before you go grab a copy of Song of Silence or one of Ruchti’s other books!
