God’s voice

The Flock Being Guided…

As pockets of clouds
drifted across the clear night sky,
the moon, at its fullest
continued to reflect
hope and promise
in each passing moment,
inspiring hope and promise
with each passing thought.
What is,
what would be,
what could be,
beholden to One,
the only One.
There is I Am.

The response to the Psalm for the Third Sunday of Lent is, “If today you hear God’s voice, harden not your hearts.” (Ps 95:8). What does a hardened heart look like? Physically, it is one in which arteries may be clogged, or the lining may be thickening, to name a couple attributes. Overall though, it is a heart that is blocked in one way or another from working optimally or as designed. Spiritually, a hardened heart is also blocked in one way or another from working fully, as intended by God.

So how does one recognize a hardened heart? Well, as with many things, there are indicators as well as tests that can alert one to the status of their heart. And in faith, the directions always start at the beginning. “If today you hear God’s voice…”

What does God’s voice look, or sound like to you? What adjectives would you use to describe God?

Now, taking Light to life, what happens when you try to assign those same adjectives to describe the heart behind your words and actions throughout the day, the week, and more? In what situations do they fit? And in what situations, is there an invitation for greater growth and movement toward taking on the heart of Jesus?

A Lenten Prayer:
Heart of Jesus, open our eyes and ears.
Heart of Jesus, show us what our hearts are looking past.
Heart of Jesus, help us to acknowledge what is, what would be, what could be.
Heart of Jesus, guide us in your way.
Heart of Jesus, bind our hearts to yours.

Rising From the Splinters…

“The heart’s affections are divided like the branches of the cedar tree; if the tree loses one strong branch, it will suffer but it does not die. It will pour all its vitality into the next branch so that it will grow and fill the empty place.” – Khalil Gibran

The cedar trees of Lebanon are known for characteristics such as their strength, beauty, and fragrance. They are also named in various Bible passages. In Psalm 29, they are referred to amid verses that describe the voice of God. However, in these verses, they are not described in terms of their beauty, fragrance, or formidable strength, but rather in terms that focus on and describe the strength of God’s voice.

The voice of the Lord is over the waters;
the God of glory thunders,
the Lord, over the mighty waters.
The voice of the Lord is power;
the voice of the Lord is splendor.
The voice of the Lord cracks the cedars;
the Lord splinters the cedars of Lebanon… – Psalm 29:3-5

What’s striking here though, is that the nature of God’s voice, or God’s will, is much more than the power to crack and splinter the magnificent cedar tree. Not only does God break through and penetrate the tree, or whatever it may be, but as described in the verse that follows,

Makes Lebanon leap like a calf,
and Sirion like a young bull. – Psalm 29:6

God opens and escorts the way to joy and newness (or fullness) of life, making it possible for something greater and more meaningful to come to the surface. And in this process, although there may be suffering, there is not death, for what is born of God is eternal.

In this new year, on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, as God’s beloved, striving to listen to the voice of God in turbulent times, let us pray for the wisdom and strength to follow the example of Jesus, with a desire to be led by the grace of God, and to learn how to rise from the splinters of all that is broken.

When the kindness and generous love
of God our savior appeared,
not because of any righteous deeds we had done
but because of his mercy,
He saved us through the bath of rebirth
and renewal by the Holy Spirit,
whom he richly poured out on us
through Jesus Christ our savior,
so that we might be justified by his grace
and become heirs in hope of eternal life. – Titus 3:4-7

To the Limit…

Under the best of circumstances there are moments that can stretch one to what feels like the end of the line or heading into an abyss. Over the past several months enduring all that has come with the COVID-19 pandemic, on top of the more typical challenges of life, has added entirely new layers to our existence. In many ways, one might say that we are often being pushed to our limits.

When the prophet, Elijah, stepped out from the safety of the cave, he did so trusting the voice of God that called upon him to do so. Prior to reaching Horeb and the cave within it, Elijah, his life in danger for being a vessel of Truth, had fled Samaria and was “on the run” for 40 days and nights. In the First Book of Kings, chapter 19, verse 4, when he says, “Enough, Lord! Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” it certainly seems he has reached his breaking point or been pushed to the brink of what he can tolerate.

However, it is exactly at this point, that Elijah finds respite, laying down, or taking a break. What looks like the end, as is often the case, becomes a new or different beginning, a new leg of the journey. After some sleep, a messenger of the Lord wakes Elijah up and prompts him to eat and drink, and then keep moving on. Under the direction of God, eventually, he arrives at the place, another place, where he meets God once again.

This many thousands of years later, trying as well as unimaginable days still exist, and they are experienced by one and all, in various ways, across the world…across the universe. Yet, at the very same time, there is God, in the urgent fleeing of Elijah, the messenger along the way, in each and every step toward the mountain and into the cave. There is God, constant… continuing presence, through great winds, the quaking of the earth, and in the burning of the fire.

And, also, there is God in the whisperings of the day, beckoning to all who might listen… endless opportunities to recognize, and face, the limits of our patience or understanding. There are so many ways to discover the essence of who we are called to be, and to seek the courage to stand up, come forward to the entrance of the cave, and be true to the Vision.

ToTheLimit

At the mountain of God, Horeb,
Elijah came to a cave where he took shelter.
Then the LORD said to him,
“Go outside and stand on the mountain before the LORD;
the LORD will be passing by.”
A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains
and crushing rocks before the LORD—
but the LORD was not in the wind.
After the wind there was an earthquake—
but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
After the earthquake there was fire—
but the LORD was not in the fire.
After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound.
When he heard this,
Elijah hid his face in his cloak
and went and stood at the entrance of the cave. – 1 Kings 19:9A, 11-13A

More Than These…

In a recent discussion involving various “hot” topics, it was refreshing to listen as well as to share and receive the thoughts, facts, opinions, and understandings of all who were present. It was also enlightening and thought provoking, when the youngest one in the group, a teenager, spoke, so mild mannered, with such honesty and so lovingly. “Well, I look at it this way. Imagine…,” she continued on, explaining her thoughts and feelings on the situation, taking into serious consideration what it might be like to be in the midst of a situation, or a life, shrouded in controversy created or inflamed by the judgment of others.

In a world run by various governments and organizations with all kinds of man-made rules and regulations, there are often many hoops to jump through, complexity, dualism, complicity all around. Despite best efforts, through all the fog, it can be easy to become bound to these entities and their impositions, rather than remaining bound to God.

In Psalm 119, verses 32 through 34, it is written:

I will run the way of your commandments,
for you will broaden my heart.
Lord, teach me the way of your statutes;
I shall keep them with care.
Give me understanding to keep your law,
to observe it with all my heart.

The psalmist’s prayer is a reminder that, more important than the law, is The Way. It promises eternal life to all who are faithful to God, but what does that really mean? The Way cannot be contained or encapsulated solely in a list or in practices put into place. It is greater than rules created or handed down by human beings. More than these, it challenges each of us to be broader… having a bold heart for truth and justice for all, to take great care in how we live, and to strive to honor God’s ways and God’s voice wholeheartedly.

MoreThanThese

Your Words

Your Words
Let me hear Your words
Above all other voices
Above all the distractions in this world

Let me hear Your words
Above all of the voices
Above all the distractions in this world

For Your words bring life
And Your voice speaks promises
Lord, Your love offers more
Than anything else in this world

Your words give us life that’s never ending
Your words bring us love that never fails
Everything else will fade away
But what will remain
Are Your words

Let us speak Your words
More than ours, more than ever
Let us share Your love with all the world

The grass will wither and the flowers will fall
But the word of our God will last forever
The grass will wither and the flowers will fall
But the word of our God will last forever

Music by Third Day performing Your Words (Official Music Video). (C)2015 Provident Label Group LLC, a division of Sony Music Entertainment