“If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” Psalm 95:7-8
If any of us were to hear the voice of God — really and truly hear it and know for sure what was being said and who was saying it — who among us could harden our hearts against it? Even an atheist would have a hard time resisting the pull and call of such a certain God.
But hearing the voice of God is, unfortunately, not so simple. Hearing the voice of God demands listening for the voice of God, an act of active contemplation that demands silence, attention and a willingness and openness to receive the divine. That in itself is an act of faith. We will never hear the voice of God until we get it in our heads and hearts what God might sound like — and not sound like. God is never the voice of anger, telling us to hate or kill in his name. God is not the voice telling us to judge others, to segregate and separate, to give privilege and abundance to some and allow disadvantage and poverty to others. The voice of God is much more challenging than that.
The voice of God is the voice that tells us to love beyond all else. It is the voice that calls us to union with itself and communion with all those around us. The voice of God tells us we have meaning and purpose, that we can be forgiven regardless of the sin and that we should forgive others over and over again, even if we cannot forget or accept what they have done. God’s voice calls out into the wilderness of our lives (and, yes, we all live in the wilderness…just watch the news): “There is a better way. There is more than all this. Come to me. Follow me.”
When you hear this today — and you will hear it in a dozen different ways if you will only listen — open your heart to it. Take it in like a breath of fresh air on a crisp fall morning and let it fill your life with a new message of love, hope, grace and peace.
Ask yourself in silence: What’s keeping me from hearing the voice of God?
9 comments On Today’s Word: Listen
Listening–one of the readings today was hearing the whisper of God. Contemplation has been beckoning me for some time and I always say I will begin but somehow I don’t. Let this be the time for me to begin. Your words spoke to me today. Thank you.
Wow Steve, that is a powerful piece of writing and an even more powerful challenge to mere mortals, caught up in the drones and drummings of a materialistic world.resulting in our looking without seeing and listening without hearing.
Prayerfulness asks of us to be completely stripped of thoughts, to create the space and the void to receive God’s soft promptings because they come not like a hurricane but like a soft gentle breeze.
God sacrificed His dearly beloved son, an act of such immense love and all He asks of us to is follow in His footsteps, to love without boundaries, without borders, to forgive ceaselessly as He has forgiven us over and over again when we repeatedly sin. To listen, to hear, to receive and to follow, then strong would be our faith and as Jesus had promised “If you have faith, nothing will be impossible for you”
Let us pray for the grace to leave the chaos of the wilderness that we live in and reach that plateau where peace of mind and heart allows us to catch God’s soft whisperings.
God Bless always Steve.
With warmest regards,
Lily Lee
Thanks, Barbara. Hope you find that time in silence and contemplation today…
Lily, thanks as always for your beautiful and thoughtful reply. Even replies to blogs sound like poetry coming from your gentle hand…
Steve,
What a powerful, meaningful message. It is a message that i need to
Read daily! You just seemed to
Hit it out of the park. I loved the attached picture. I have a son at SLU so any of your pictures from around the St. Louis area, I certainly appreciate.
Blessings to you and your family.
Beautiful, inspiring! Need I say more?
Judy
Thank you Steve. My heart overflows with grateful thanks for your kind words.
It is truly encouraging coming from one such as yourself.
Lily
Thanks, Mary. I hope your son is thriving at SLU. I work just down the road at Washington University.
Thanks, Judy.