Can You Hear Me Now
It’s been a while since you’ve heard from me. In recent months my husband and I have re-located to a less populated area. There is a lot to do, boxes to unpack, (still!) along with adjusting to a new location and meeting a few folks. We are fortunate that we now live closer to our daughter.
I’ve missed the opportunity to speak with you via this site.
I have a few questions for you. Do you hear the voice of God? How does God speak to us? Here are a few ways I can think of. God speaks to us through His word, the Bible. He speaks to us while we are in prayer, in those quiet times when we are prompted to pray for someone, and we have no idea why. How about through others? Maybe your Pastor, or Bible Study leader? Maybe God speaks to you through a faithful friend who has known you for some time. Does God speak to you through a relative? How about your Mom, Dad, an Aunt, Uncle, or Grandparent? If you still have these folks in your life you are blessed indeed. I’m sure they have lots of wisdom and life experiences to share.
Recently I realized I wasn’t hearing God’s voice. I’ll be honest here, it ALARMED me. So I tried to figure out why, and I realized a few things. I took a serious look at how I was using my time. I also analyzed my thinking. What I found was that several hours a day were spent consuming media. LOTS of Media. I’m talking 5 hours or more a day here. Do you relate? Well, guess what that did to my thought life? I was fearful, anxious, very stressed, and really having a tough time focusing on any one thing. As a friend of mine has jokingly said to me-“I miss my brain!” But in addition to all of those things, there was so much “noise” in my life because of what I was consuming it had crowded out God’s voice. I couldn’t hear Him! That was the issue.
So, needless to say I’m making some needed changes in my life. I’m really limiting my media consumption. Within 1 day I realized my mind was full of God’s word once again. I am so relieved! I find myself thanking God. He is Faithful and True. His word is powerful! And it can make such a difference in your outlook on life.
How about you, my friend? What are you spending your time doing? What are your eyes focused on? Are you hearing God’s voice? Life is CRAZY, and it seems especially so in this year of 2020. The news will still be there. The world will still be there. Immersing ourselves in all that is not helpful to our spirits, or our minds.
I’m reminded of the chorus I learned as a child. “Be careful little eyes what you see, Be careful little eyes what you see, For the Father up above is looking down in love, O be careful little eyes what you see.”
Psalm 119 is all about the word of God. I’m going to write just a few of them for you here.
Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee. v 11
Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek Him with all their heart. verses 1-2
I will obey your decrees. Please don’t give up on me! verse 8
Your laws please me; they give me wise advice. verse 24
Revive me by your word. verse 25
Make me walk along the path of your commands, for that is where my happiness is found. Give me an eagerness for your laws, rather than a love for money! Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word. Renew my life with your goodness. verses 35-37, 40
Bless you friends, as you listen for God’s voice.
Mountain Rose