God’s Silence Does Not Mean God’s Absence
By David Villa
In my darkest moments… when I can’t see clearly… I remember that King David had been there, too.
He knew the wilderness. He knew the silence. He knew what it felt like to cry out to a God who felt far away.
In Psalm 22, David pours out words so raw that Jesus Himself would later cry them from the cross:
“My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why are you so far away when I groan for help? Every day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer. Every night you hear my voice, but I find no relief.” (Psalm 22:1–2 NLT)
This isn’t poetic distance. This is pain. This is a warrior who had faced lions, bears, and giants… a king who had seen miracle after miracle… now wrestling with the ache of unanswered prayers. The same God who once showed up so powerfully now seemed painfully silent.
Scripture doesn’t tell us the exact moment David wrote these words, but his life gives us plenty of candidates…hunted by Saul, hiding in caves, betrayed, exhausted, overwhelmed. Seasons where the promise felt distant and the pressure felt relentless.
And then there’s Psalm 10, where David asks the question every believer has whispered…or shouted…in the dark:
“O Lord, why do you stand so far away? Why do you hide when I am in trouble?” (Psalm 10:1 NLT)
These aren’t the words of a man who lost his faith. These are the words of a man whose faith was strong enough to be honest. David’s relationship with God wasn’t fragile…it could withstand questions, anguish, and raw emotion. He understood something many of us forget: faith and struggle can exist in the same breath. Intimacy with God doesn’t mean we never feel abandoned…it means the relationship survives even when we do.
In every dark season of my life, I’ve learned this truth the hard way… God’s silence does not mean God’s absence. Sometimes the dryness isn’t punishment…it’s an invitation. An invitation to trust when we can’t feel Him. To seek when He seems hidden. To love when His ways don’t make sense.
If I’m being honest, I’d much rather receive an invitation to an all-expense-paid vacation than an invitation into the wilderness. But I don’t run God’s invitation office.
Here’s the anchor when everything else feels unsteady: God’s presence is not dependent on my ability to sense it. He made a promise…and He keeps it.
“Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.” (Deuteronomy 31:8 NLT)
Even when I can’t see clearly…
Even when the night feels endless…
Even when the prayers seem unanswered…
He is still there.
David Villa is the founder and CEO of iPD Agency, one of the leading direct marketing firms in the United States and Canada, servicing multiple industries. You can find his content on his Game Changer platform, which helps business leaders put God at the forefront of their work. He and his wife Diana live in Tampa, Florida and have three children and three grandchildren.
Connect: David Villa (@CoachDavidVilla) / X