Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud:
“This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”
Mark 9:7
A couple was getting a divorce, they went in to see an attorney.
The attorney says, “Do you have grounds for divorce?”
Husband replies, “About an acre and a half.”
Hmm..
The attorney says, “Do you have a grudge?”
“No,” replies the husband. “We have a carport.”
The attorney tries again, “Does your wife beat you?”
“No,” replies the husband. “I get up before her every morning.”
Finally, the attorney asks, “Why, exactly do you want a divorce?”
The husband replies, “I don’t. My wife does. She says we can’t communicate!”
This is how the Sunday morning sermon started yesterday. The pastor went on to give a beautiful homily on communication and listening to the voice of the Lord.
Communication is key for so many things in life. There are so many voices in the world today, that I have to work at listening to the RIGHT voice. I have to work at not being distracted by all the voices that can pull me in so many directions.
At the transfiguration, even the three disciples, Peter, James and John were told, “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!” These guys are WALKING AND TALKING WITH HIM DAILY – IN REAL LIFE. Yet, they had to be reminded to listen to him.
As I thought about this the rest of the day, I thought about how often I let the voice of other things crowd my head. The voice of other people. If I am not careful, I find the voices of things and people of the world AND the voice of the evil one dictating my thoughts and actions.
So…how do I fix this? How do I make it so that the voice I am listening to is the ONE TRUE VOICE? The answer, which I knew but was given my the pastor yesterday, pray, listen, spend time in His word.
The hardest part for me? The listening. Even during my daily quiet time, if I am not careful I will be thinking ahead about the day and what I have to do. Or thinking about a blog post. Or…whatever. What I really need to do is quiet my mind. Be still. And listen.
So, again today I renew my choice to listen. To listen to the voice that is TRUE. The voice that is AUTHENTIC. The voice that is NOBLE.
Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by
filling your minds and meditating on things
true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling,
gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly;
things to praise, not things to curse.
Put into practice what you learned from me,
what you heard and saw and realized.
Do that, and God, who makes everything work together,
will work you into his most excellent harmonies.
Philippians 4:8-9 (The Message)
Thank you, Lord, for the reminder – again – to listen. To listen to you and your voice.
And you? Do you have trouble listening and hearing the RIGHT voice?
Joining with Michelle at Graceful for
By the way, my friend Dianne is close to her 1000th post. She is giving away a new header. Go check out her blog.
Boy, you hit the nail on the head today–
especially the part about "thinking ahead" and maybe about a "blog post."
I may be taking a break soon just to clear my head and get alone with Jesus once again–
To empty myself of me and let Jesus fill me with Himself–
Great post, Mary and thanks so much for the "shout out."
Jesus said His sheep would know His voice so we sure do need to know who we are listening to and make sure it is the Lord's voice….I
It's so easy for the world to drawn Him out and that alone is reason enough to spend as much alone time with Him as possible….
Thank you for this post….I am still pondering….
That is why he also said 'BE still and know … ' for when we are still we can perhaps hear his whispers.
This is what's been on my mind, and in fact the same topic I posted about too! We can so often ignore His loving and compassionate voice; how blessed I am when I stop and listen to Him and let Him take control of my day!
Blessings and hugs Mary, 🙂
Denise
Mary, our communication with HIM is essential! I'm preaching to myself here. So glad you shared this link, just may join in soon.
Hope all is well with you.