More...Listening

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” 
Matthew 17:5

I like to hear the sound of my own voice. I sometimes speak out loud when I am by myself. I like to hear the sound of myself sharing my thoughts. While this isn’t inherently wrong, it can sometimes get in the way of hearing what God wants to say to me. You see, usually when I speak to myself I am not waiting for Him to speak but am voicing what I want first.

That very well may have been Peter’s issue when he was on the Mount of Transfiguration with Jesus. He wants Jesus. That is not in doubt. But was Jesus truly enough for Peter? Or was he easily distracted by the appearance of two of his heroes in the faith?

One minute Peter is with Jesus, enjoying some much needed respite from the crowds and demands and the next minute Jesus is shining, glowing as though He has somehow become nuclear! And with Him are two men Peter recognized instantly! Moses and Elijah! His lifelong heroes!

No doubt Peter was afraid. Mark tells us as much. Mark’s gospel is likely told through the experience of Peter. (Mark 9:5-6) Mark relates Peter’s story, “I didn’t know what to say!” (my paraphrase)

Indeed, what do you say when the man you have walked hundreds of miles with, had conversations with, who you thought you knew pretty well suddenly becomes bursting light? And if that wasn’t enough two of your faith heroes show up too! I would submit that the human brain damaged by its sin nature can’t fully grasp that sort of reality.

Peter, in his shock, blurts out, “Let’s build some shrines! You can have one, Jesus. And yes, I’ll make a couple for Moses and Elijah as well! Just give the word!” Somehow Peter has yet to connect all the dots. He has not yet come to understand that it is Jesus who is preeminent. Peter has betrayed his own heart. Jesus is his hero, yes. But he has other heroes as well. He is willing to give these lesser heroes equal billing. Jesus has not yet become his all in all.

Before another word can be spoken, the whole mountain is enveloped with something like a cloud, but one that glows with light rather than covering everything in shadow and darkness. Papa God has shown up and He’s not messing around. “Pay attention! This is my Son, whom I love dearly and who pleases me completely. Listen to Him!” (Matthew 17:5, my paraphrase)

Listen to Him. I have ruminated on just that phrase all day long. Do I really listen? Or do I respond to Jesus in much the same manner Peter demonstrates on the mountain? Do I make lesser things equal to or greater than Jesus? It is an important question. And if I truly want more of God, I need to pay attention to what God tells me to do.

Listen.

Listen instead of clamoring to get my own way.

Listen instead of yelling and screaming out of the pain of my own circumstances.
Listen when I think I’ve got things figured out...because I really don’t.
Listen when life seems to be going well and I don’t seem to have any cares.
Listen when life is falling apart.

Listen...  

Always.

When I am listening I am more apt to speak helpful, God glorifying things. I am more in tune with His desires.  I am more able to put away lesser things.  I am more apt to be worshipful.  My heart more openly beats with desire for Him!  More of Him!

Today I leave you with the words from a song written by the worshipper, Matt Redman:

You are God in heaven

And here am I on earth

So I'll let my words be few

Jesus, I am so in love with You

And I'll stand in awe of You, Jesus

Yes, I'll stand in awe of You

And I'll let my words be few

Jesus, I am so in love with You

The simplest of all love songs

I want to bring to You

So I'll let my words be few

Jesus, I am so in love with You

More...Christmas Listening

Later, the Lord sent this message to King Ahaz: “Ask the Lord your

God for a sign of confirmation, Ahaz. Make it as difficult as you want -

as high as heaven or as deep as the place of the dead.”

But the king refused. “No,” he said, “I will not test the Lord like that.”

Then Isaiah said, “Listen well, you royal family of David! Isn’t it enough

to exhaust human patience? Must you exhaust the patience of my God as well?  All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).   Isaiah 7:10-14

How well do you listen?  Do you listen well enough to follow through on what you hear?  “Wait,” you might say, “I thought I was reading a Christmas message?”  You are. A lot of listening happens in the Christmas story, actually. Mary listens and responds, “may it be done to me according to your word.”  (Luke 1:38)  Joseph listens and responds by taking Mary as his wife and ensures she will still be a virgin at the Baby’s birth even though by all appearances she has made a fool of him.  (Matthew 1:24-25)   The shepherds listen and after the angels leave them, they find the Baby and leave glorifying and praising God.  (Luke 2:16-20)  If any of these participants in the Christmas story had not listened well, they would have missed the wonders of what God had planned for them.

But the very first participant in the Christmas story didn’t listen well at all.  Perhaps you’ve never heard this part of the story. King Ahaz had frozen with fear.  His father, Uzziah, had died and he now found himself on the royal throne. And now, when the kings of Aram and Remaliah show up to do battle with him all he can do is quake with fear.  God, in His goodness shows up through the prophet Isaiah, saying, “Take care and be calm, have no fear and do not be fainthearted because of these two stubs of smoldering firebrands.”  (Isaiah 7:1-4)  You’d think that message would quell Ahaz’s fears.  After all, God is telling Him not to fear; He has it all under control.

Remember how I told you that Ahaz didn’t listen well?  Yep. You got it! That message didn’t stop his shaking.  So God tells Ahaz to ask for a sign. “I won’t do it!” Ahaz declares.  His fear is magnified with this request. He doesn’t want to put God to the test, or so he says.  He’s really just too afraid to ask.

“Okay,” God replies (my paraphrase), “but I’m going to give you one anyway.”  And God proceeds to tell him a little story. “Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.”  

“Okay, God.  That’s a pretty fantastic story.”  A virgin having a baby? Impossible.  But that’s the point. God is God over even the impossible.  The exclamation point for Ahaz is the name - Immanuel...God is with us.  If God is with us, the impossible becomes possible.  If God is with us, there is a way through the pain, the difficulties, the rejection. Add your own issue.  If God is with you, that issue isn’t impossible. God has it under control. But there is a catch.

Ah yes, you knew it was too good to be true..right?  Wrong! Remember our character, Ahaz? God asked him to ask.  He wants you to ask. Are you listening? He is with you.  Immanuel did come.  God is with us. And He wants us to ask.  So do it! You have nothing to lose and everything to gain!

More... Praying Often Looks More Like Listening

 So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship 

with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has 

made us friends of God.  Romans 5:11 NLT

If someone were to say the word "prayer" right now, what is the first thing that comes to your mind?  I have to admit that the photograph known as Grace by Eric Enstrom is the image that comes to mind.  I'm sure you've seen it.  It's an image of an older, wizened man, white bearded face, head bowed in prayer sitting at a table with a loaf of bread, a bowl and what appears to be a Bible.  A copy of this photograph hung in my childhood home, in the dining room to be exact.  I'm not sure how or why this picture came to be there, but it resided on the wall above a music stand for decades.  The photograph, of course, is posed.  It wasn't a candid which caught a man deeply devoted in prayer.  The subject was actually a peddler who happened to stop by the home of a photographer preparing for a photographer's convention and was hired to pose for the now iconic portrait.

I remember as a child when asked to bow my head in prayer, obediently bowing and clasping my hands (as I'd observed in the photograph) but often not engaging with what the  pray-er was actually saying.  I may have had the posture of prayer but I was not praying.  I also remember times of putting myself in a posture of prayer before a meal only to really be thinking of what was coming for dessert.  Sometimes, like that old photograph, what we are calling prayer is really nothing more than going through the motions.

If I am to have more of God, going through the motions is unacceptable with prayer.  Shallow prayers with no depth or substance are not going to draw me deep into God's heart.  I am reminded of the story Jesus told of two men who prayed, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  (Luke 18:9-12)  Jesus describes one man whose "prayer" (and I use that term loosely!) is completely centered on himself.  Because of that story I think that we sometimes do an old pendulum swing and pray for anything but ourselves.  That is not biblical either as the story Jesus tells just prior to the "two men" story is about a woman who seeks justice from a judge constantly as a lesson about persistence in prayer...and she asks for justice from her adversaries.  

It's okay to get personal.  As a matter of fact, I think it's mandatory that we get personal in prayer.  If we don't we will never relate to God as anything but a distant notion, a far off authority who has no real relevance to our lives.  As a child I had the privilege of studying cello with a cellist who had studied with the famed cellist Pablo Casals.  He used to tell me that he would rather see me spend five minutes rehearsing well than an hour pretending to be practicing.  Whatever we happen to be doing, pretending doesn't  do anything to advance us in skill or ability.  Pretending at prayer doesn't fill our relational need for more of God either.

I've been thinking about prayer as part of my More series for awhile, but when I'd sit down to write I couldn't connect to my topic, until last week.  You see, last week my husband Alan and I went to dinner with a couple whom we've recently become acquainted.  Dinner was the setting in which we anticipated getting to know each other better.  As I thought over last week's meal, it came to me; prayer is a lot like having dinner with friends!  I recalled that we laughed and enjoyed good food.  We shared stories about ourselves.  These two beautiful people went from being virtual strangers to being friends whom I care about a great deal.  I learned where they had come from, how they'd come to be together, how they had handled a number of difficulties through the years, how they traveled with Jesus, just to name a few topics.  I discovered that they have some of the same passions that I share with Alan!  And here's the thing...I think they'd say the same about us.

What does that story have to do with prayer, you ask?  Let me tell you.  Prayer is not an intellectual exercise, an oratory or a set of lists to check off.  It is organic and personal and interactive.  It should be approached with enjoyment and desire and longing.  If we were to engage God through prayer similar to the manner we might engage with a friend over dinner, I think prayer would take on a new dimension in our lives.  What might that look like?

I think approaching prayer as a friendship communal would be just that, an interaction with a friend.  It would feel much less restrained and somber, a little more free and light-hearted.  I don't mean to insinuate that we forget that God is holy and righteous.  But when did holiness become synonymous with seriousness and inaccessibility? Why don't we approach God with laughter in our mouths and on our hearts?  Why do we insist on treating Him like a royal killjoy?  Do you recall the phrase "laughter is the best medicine?"  It turns out, it really is.  And because we are made in God's image, I think this tells us something of God as well.  I remember going to a women's prayer meeting when I lived in Flagstaff, Arizona and having a young woman start her prayer with "Hi God!  It's Brandi again!"  Her soul lightening heart attitude was fresh and free of arrogance and full of enjoyment.  It brought joy to my heart as well and spoke a truth deep into my soul; formality doesn't necessarily make us better at prayer, just perhaps a bit more reticent.  She spoke with God as though He were right there with her.  And why not?  He was.  He is.

We also forget, I think, that God is relational.  He doesn't need us, but He wants us.  He made us for relationship with Him.  I think, therefore, it's imperative that when we come to God in prayer we view Him with an eye to relationship.  We speak.  We listen.  Then we listen some more.  He already knows what's in my heart.  I don't need to tell Him.  The reason that I do is that it engages me in the conversation.  But if all I do is talk I've dramatically missed the point.  Listening is the larger part of prayer.  It's the part that changes us.

Well then, how do you do that?  It's certainly a fair question, but not an easy one to answer, I'm afraid.  I think that's because listening comes in such a variety of forms.  It can look a whole lot like reading the Bible (and this is certainly a key component to hearing God).  Have you ever been reading a passage only to have something jump out at you?  Remember my story about lectio divina and the word "be?"  That story gives a pretty good example of what I'm trying to convey here.

It can be words coming out of the mouth of another person that strike deep in my heart.  I recall an impassioned, but totally inappropriate conversation I was having with a friend of mine.  She very calmly told me that she was going to hang up and wait for the person who was her friend to call her back.  It shocked me back into reality!  And later when I called her back she could not recall making that statement!  

Sometimes it is a still, small voice reassuring me.  Last fall, after I'd gotten done with an hour in the prayer tent we had set up outside our church, I left feeling a bit skeptical that God would actually do what I was asking Him to do - bring revival.  I continued to struggle with Him as I drove down the hill from the church.  As I turned onto the highway I happened to look and saw a woman I had been praying for walking up the highway.  I turned around to pick her up.  As it turns out, she was heading to the prayer tent!  As we drove back up the hill she told me about how excited she was to spend an hour in prayer with other believers.  I'd been praying for her salvation.  And as I drove away after dropping her at the tent I heard God's sweet reassurance in my spirit, "Ruth, she is my deposit on your request."  That firmed my faith in a real hurry!

There are other ways God speaks as well, if we're willing to listen.  Sometimes he speaks through our surroundings.  I am reminded of another story I told in an earlier post.  In the section where I talk about prayer I tell the story of taking a walk, when in fact, God had been calling me to just be quiet with Him in my garden.  Recall that when the Pharisees try to rebuke Jesus for not correcting His disciples who were openly worshiping Him, He tells them, "I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out."  (Luke 19:40)  

God is able to speak through anything He wants.  We just need to be able to listen.  And that takes practice.  Don't be discouraged if you feel you're not hearing anything at first.  Recognizing God's voice is crucial to our relationship with Him, and He's very patient with us.  Ask Him to speak to you.  Keep on practicing.  Keep on going to Him.  Keep on enjoying the relationship.  The hearing will come.