Numbers 23:3

Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stand beside your burnt offering, and I will go; perhaps the LORD will come to meet me, and whatever He shows me I will tell you.” So he went to a bare hill.

This sounds familiar.  When people who know want to hear from God, they get away from the noise and the crowds.  Jesus did this, a lot.  Moses went up on Mt. Sinai alone, he saw the burning bush alone, he went into the Tabernacle alone, and he heard from God, a lot.  That’s one reason that I love my early mornings – alone.  It’s quiet and I can hear.  That’s not to say I hear a lot… my mind is sometimes just as bad as other noise.  But it’s in these quiet moments that I get a few minutes of peace, when I can read God’s Words without distraction (for the most part – I just got distracted by looking up Jewish schools to see if my kids could learn Torah – sadly, since neither John nor I am Jewish, I’ll have to find another way), and when I can reflect on what I read instead of rushing through it…. And now G. is up and I must go.  So much for quiet reflection.  God is laughing at me. 

Numbers 7:89

Now when Moses went into the tabernacle of meeting to speak with Him, he heard the voice of One speaking to him from above the mercy seat that [was] on the ark of the Testimony, from between the two cherubim; thus He spoke to him.

Can you imagine hearing the voice of God?  Actually, the Hebrew (as I have it in the Blue Letter Bible) says he heard the voice speaking to him…, but it’s implied that it’s God, because who else would be speaking from the ark?  Whatever the wording, Moses has an incredible relationship with God.  He saw God’s back (basically, saw every place in history where God had been), and he had lived for months on the outskirts of the camp with God regularly visiting his tent!  He also regularly hear God speak.  He didn’t hear Him the way we think of it, that God speaks through His Bible or through songs or through other people or circumstances.  No, he heard that actual voice of God (probably muted and gentled so as not to blow him away).  What an experience that must have been!  I wonder if there’s anyone alive today who’s heard God’s voice, truly, in an audible way.  I wonder if it knocked them off their feet in fear and wonder.

I read a book a long time ago and in it the main character had to go and find the name of god in order to defeat the creature who had imprisoned her friend.  When she received it she had a hard time concentrating because it filled up her entire being and held so much knowledge and understanding that she could stand for hours just contemplating and thinking and basking in the radiance.  Interestingly, even though the story takes place in a fictional place, the implication through the imagery and other descriptions is that the people from whom she receives the name of god are a lost tribe of the Israelites and the god’s name is the name of our God.  Anyway, reading this verse reminded me of that portion of her story, and I wonder if the voice of God held the same kind of wonder and overwhelmingness (yes, not a word, I know).  That would be incredible!

Note:  Skip Moen spoke about God as the Word this morning… an interesting connection!

Matthew 4:22

They immediately followed him, leaving the boat and their father behind.

This is a really cool verse.  Jesus is walking along the Sea of Galilee one day and starts recruiting.  First He calls Peter and Andrew, and then He gets to James and John.  They’re sitting on the shore with their dad, talking and mending the fishing nets.  Jesus calls them to be His disciples and this verse happens.  They immediately jumped up and followed Him, waving a quick goodbye to their (probably puzzled) father.

A couple of thoughts occur.  First, did they know anything about Jesus when they were called?  Where they that glad to get away from the smelly fish and tangled nets that they would follow anyone who offered something different?  Probably not.  Or did their hearts jump the way John jumped in Elizabeth’s womb when the Messiah was close by?  This is more likely.  But, Jesus was still pretty unknown.  He had been baptised by John the Baptist and God had come down and spoken to Him.  So maybe they’d heard about that.  It’s interesting that they are so eager to leave everything familiar to them and follow a complete stranger.

Second, they didn’t hang out and help their dad finish the nets.  They left immediately.  They didn’t wait or think about anything.  Instead they grabbed their clothes and ran.  We should be like that.  I wonder how many opportunities I’ve missed because I didn’t drop everything and follow God when He called to me – the first time.  I get so busy with life that I forget God’s call is higher than that.  Sometimes I’m so busy, like Martha, that I don’t even hear Him calling me to put it all down and hang out with Him for  a while.  So, that’s my prayer today – that when I hear God calling I’ll drop it all and chase after Him.  After all, He knows my life’s song.  He should since He wrote it.  And wherever He’s going is a place I want to be.

Aside:  that last statement is a little terrifying to write.  It’s true, but its implications scare me sometimes.

Zephaniah 3:17

For the LORD your God has arrived to live among you. He is a mighty savior. He will rejoice over you with great gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will exult over you by singing a happy song.

You know, it’s a little scary to read all the prophecy books, because there are some definite similarities between our nation (American) and the nations that God is angry with for their pride, arrogance and cruelty.  A lady at the grocery store where I was checking out told me that they’ve started removing “In God We Trust” from the money that’s being printed!  I haven’t noticed it, but it (sadly) wouldn’t surprise me too much.  We have become arrogant enough to trust in ourselves and declare it to the world!

Ah, but these words are beautiful.  They’re soothing after all the destruction of the prophecies.  I can only imagine the beauty of God’s voice singing!  I think of the most beautiful voices I know (Emmy Rossum, Sarah Brightman, Kari Jobe, to name a few) and it’s even more amazing than that!  I love how His love calms my fears.  He is glad of us!  And, so, despite the depravity and chaos, there is hope and something to look forward to.  As much as I love aspects of life, it will be a great day when God sings over me.

Mark, one of the pastors at the church, did a segment during the sermon (about hearing from God), and a couple of things really struck me:

1.  An analogy he used was a beach he goes to every year where the water is incredibly clear, and he can see straight through it for several meters all around him (no sharks sneaking up on him!).  But one year he went and the waters were all churned up from a storm, making it impossible to see through the waters at all.  So are our lives when we are in the midst of storms.  When we’re all churned up, we can’t see what’s around us, nor where to go next.  But if we withdraw to a quiet place (have a cup of tea, says the Brit) and let things settle a little (surrender, relax, pray) the waters become more clear and it’s easier to see.  It’s such a perfect analogy for when we’re in a storm.  I love it!

2.  The other point he made was that it’s God’s responsibility to speak loudly enough for me to hear.  One of the things I wonder about is if I’ve missed God’s whisper.  Did He speak and I didn’t hear Him?  But Mark pointed out that God wants us to hear His voice, so He will speak loudly enough for me to hear Him.  Now, if I’m off doing my own thing and not paying attention or making any effort to listen, I can still miss his voice (kind of how my son “misses” hearing my voice when he’s playing or watching Veggie Tales).  But if I’m truly listening and paying attention, it’s God’s responsibility to speak loudly enough for me to hear.  And He knows just how loud is loud enough.

Those were two points that really hit home for me, speaking to areas of my life where I struggle.  Yeah God!

Jeremiah 23:18

But can you name even one of these prophets who knows the Lord well enough to hear what he is saying?  Has even one of them cared enough to listen?

There have been lots of times in my life when I have wished that God spoke more clearly (or maybe more audibly) to me.  And over and over people have reminded me that to hear God speak I need to get to know Him.  This verse seems to prove that.  The brief background is that God was asking Jeremiah if any of the other prophets in Jerusalem even cared about Him anymore (rhetorically, of course).  But the most interesting this here is what God Himself says we need to do to hear from Him: know the Lord well enough and listen.

In our world today, I find the listening part to be really hard.  It’s not that I talk a lot, but my life is filled with a lot of noise:  Technology, children, husband, work, etc.  And all that noise makes it hard to listen.  I am easily distracted.  But the other key, knowing God, is also challenging since I have two small children (translation: I have very little time without distractions).  Right now I’m sitting in the dark in the living room (having just fed my littlest boy and hoping that he decides sleep is a good choice) at 5:50 a.m.  I’ll be amazed if my oldest doesn’t get up some time in the next 10 minutes.  And some days they’re both up and raring to go at 5am.  I choose to believe that God knows this.  And my mom pointed out that God isn’t angry at me on those days when the boys wake up crazy early and I don’t get quiet time with Him.  He made my boys that way.  What He cares about is if I’m trying to make time, even for 5-10 minutes, to talk to Him and spend time in His word – even if that means reading one verse and thinking about it throughout the day.  Does it always happen?  No.  But I do want to know God, and I want to hear from Him.  So I steal a minute when I can.  And try to remember to listen.

This is so often my heart’s cry. I want to do God’s will, and I want Him to show me what it is. The problem is that I have trouble listening, I think. Sometimes, I have a pretty darn good idea what He wants me to do, and I do my own thing because I don’t want to do what He tells me to do. But that’s different. That’s me being stubborn and distrusting of God. My problem lies in hearing Him clearly. I know people who will tell me, “God told me…” and I wonder just how He did that. How do they know so clearly what God said? I’ve asked, and often they just say that it comes from reading the Bible. I hope it’s something that comes with time, because so often I feel blind and deaf. Maybe it’s because I don’t listen well, too absorbed in my own thoughts, or maybe God’s just not ready to give directions. Either way, I suspect it’s a process.

I love talking to my children even if they don’t understand yet, and I know that I am God’s child. So, I’ll keep learning to listen because I know that God wants to speak with me, maybe not audibly (although that might be nice – terrifying, but nice) but however it is, I hope it’s clear!

Did you catch the part about the ears being wide open, not the eyes? We normally say our eyes were wide open, but this is different. Why ears? Have you ever watched a scary movie (or Jaws or something similar) with the sound down so you can’t hear? If you try it, you’ll notice that it’s not nearly as scary without the sound. The ominous theme song, the little noises in the background that you don’t consciously recognize, the creaking board…. all these add to the feeling of suspense. Without them, it’s just not the same.

We get a lot out of our ears. A lot of what we hear we don’t even register. God wants our ears open. Not just subconsciously, but truly open and listening. He wants to speak, but it’s so easy to miss His voice if we’re not listening, if our ears aren’t wide open and paying attention, taking it all in. The life of our soul is at stake, and if we miss His voice so many sad things can happen. There are lots of times in my life when I wish my ears had been wide open and I’d been listening because then, maybe, I could have avoided some of the messes that I found myself in. God doesn’t yell (at least not often). His voice isn’t in the fire or the wind or the thunder. His voice is a whisper, and if we don’t pay attention, if our ears aren’t wide open, then we’ll miss those gentle words. It’s so easy to go through the day focused on ourselves and what we have to say. It’s much harder to keep an ear tuned for God’s voice speaking in our ears.

I can’t even begin to tell you how I wish I had followed God’s commands at certain points in my life. One of the things that frustrated me the most was not always knowing if I was doing what God wanted. I still wonder about that. But, the only way to really know God’s voice is to get to know Him. And the only way to do that is to take time…. which is a challenge when you have 2 small children! But there it is. I need to make time for the important things.

At the church where my children attend daycare there is a sign with messages. The last few weeks the sign has said “If God has asked you to perform a great deed, expect opposition.” That sounds like the story of our life! I truly believe that my husband, John, has been called to things that are not so common. I also believe that that is a part of what we’ve been facing for the last few years – opposition to discourage us and to drive us away from God. Sadly, this opposition has served its purpose well at times. But, knowing you’re in a battle is half the battle won – at least we can plan for the fight once we know we’re in one. So, now it becomes an issue of minimizing the opposition, or finding ways to overcome it.

Another book I read that I’ve recommended in the past (In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day) said that worship is the way out. In the middle of the opposition, whether its from a failure to listen to God’s voice or from an attack to discourage, worshiping God shifts focus from what’s wrong and what the problem is and refocuses me on the Problem Solver, and what is good. Although worship is important part of my life, there are a lot of times when I have to remind myself to find the good in the circumstances so I don’t get discouraged. Despite my struggles, I am really blessed in so many ways.