Listening

All day I have been trying to listen.

I have been trying to listen to God. I have been trying to hear His word. I have been trying to hear His word for my life, His word for those around me, His word for ANYTHING.

This entertainment/distraction driven society, I have come to a new level of awareness of my distance from God. By distance, I mean realizing actually that God is.

What do I mean by this? If you and I truly (I mean really, seriously, truly, with-everything-within-us truly) believed that God is real, would we not drop everything we are doing to obey His desire for our lives?

The obvious answer to that question fresh in mind creates this revelation of how extremely little I act as if God were real; I mean actually real.

I know that He has wanted me to press in with my prayer life. I used to pray for hours daily. Recently, I have been so consumed with my work and projects and such, that I will (of course) "do it later."

So, I have decided to try with the little things, like listening. Listening for Him, to be more specific.

To be honest, it is one of the most potent tools in my spiritual-walk arsenal. Just trying to listen to Him for what His will is on this or that begins to turn one's mind on Him more continuously.

Is this even a valid tool for a Christian? I have often wondered if this is valid, or if it is a meager, Americanistic approach to spirituality that any moderately faithful Buddhist, Muslim, or Hindu scoff at. (Maybe not "scoff". That word seems as if it should be reserved for the British.)

Well, if you ask Lawrence, it is a VERY valid approach to having a real relationship with God. (Not Lawrence of Arabia. That would be more Islamic than anything. AND he was a Brit.) Brother Lawrence, the eternal soul whose life was revealed in "Practicing the Presence of God," was quoted as often saying that just listening for God in the little things was his key to a powerful walk in God.

He went to be with the Lord in 1691. 300 years later and his life still has a HUMONGOUS impact on the Christian brethren. His life MUST have been anointed by the presence of God. And his words can be relied upon for wisdom on how to live.

He believed that listening for Him was the key.

I challenge you: this week, take little moments and little decisions to listen to hear what God is saying. In the midst of the business and chaos, in the middle of our electronically-charged lives stop to hear what He is saying to you.