Words

"So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; it will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it." Isaiah 55:11, NASB.

I wonder how many of my words have fallen on deaf ears. Maybe I really don't want to know the answer! I'm afraid that the reverse has been true also: I have not listened when someone was talking to me. Rarely was it on purpose, but often because my mind was racing in another direction.

Isaiah 55:11 reminds me that God's Word never returns void. I know there have been times I did not listen to the Lord. I am sure there have been days that I read the Word and did not take time to comprehend the message. Yet, God tells us that He always speaks through His Word, and that His Word will accomplish what He desires. God speaks through the Bible and He doesn't waste His Words.

When I share the Word with others, I can know that God is at work. Some may choose to try to close their ears, but God knows how to speak to the heart. The promise here is that when we share His Word (the Bible), He speaks through the Scriptures. In order to be the most effective, I need to just stay in the Word.

If you are wondering where to start, read the book of 1 John. This small book toward the end of the New Testament will help you know one of the most important things about listening: the assurance that you have listened to His call to your heart, to believe on Jesus and give Him your life.

Lord, give us ears to listen to You as we read Your Word. Give us your words to say as we share Your truth with others.

Throwing out the old: Anger and rage

"This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger" (James 1:19, New American Standard Bible).

Almost everyone I know seems to have a "button" or two, something that has potential to make them upset. Sometimes, anger simmers. Other times, it can boil over into rage and tear at things or people around us, even ourselves.

God shows us an alternative. Psalm 145:8 reads, "The LORD is gracious and merciful; slow to anger and great in lovingkindness" (NASB). He asks us to be quick to listen, and yet slow to speak and slow to anger.  We aren't perfect, but the way we can live it out is by looking at Jesus' life and by the Holy Spirit's power working in us.

Whether anger and rage are common or rare within us, we can remember that God is Immanuel, God with us. As we are tempted to act in anger, let's ask God to make it simmer before we move on with the day. He is in control. As we set our trust in Him, He will lead us through whatever is going on.

Lord, help us listen to others and to be slow to speak and slow to anger. Protect us from anger boiling over and its results. We ask that You give us hearts that can respond with the grace and mercy You've shown us. Amen.

Above study based on the workbook HeartCall: Women Sharing God's Heart (Jaye Martin, 1999).
Image from http://www.dianagabriel.com/blog

The Best

"'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search with all your heart'" (Jeremiah 29:11-13, New American Standard Bible). 

God's unconditional love is something that reveals His divinity and His unmatchable, pure heart. He encourages us to receive His love. He invites us to trust in Him and talk to Him through prayer.

In Isaiah 46:4-5, God spoke to His people through the prophet Isaiah and said,

"Even to your old age I will be the same and even to your graying years I will be with you! 

I have done it, and I will carry you; and I will bear you and I will deliver you. 

To whom would you liken Me and make Me equal and compare me, that we would be alike?"

The God of all time - past, present, and future (a.k.a. the "I AM") - has a divine plan to save His people. He sent Jesus Christ to show us His love on earth, as He came to speak and live God's Word, as well as sacrifice for our sins.  He did all of that so He could bring us out of the sin that threatens to damage us and into His family, where we are forgiven for our sins, are given the Holy Spirit, and can grow in our relationship with Him.

In Jesus, we can see even more how God loves us and wants the best for us and His kingdom. What's our response to God? Do we trust Him? Have we asked for forgiveness and leadership from Him? Are there ways we can share who He is with others today?

Lord, thank You for Your incomparable love and for wanting the best for us. Help us love You more and to trust in Your plans. Help us share where our hope comes from with others today. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Above study based on the workbook HeartCall: Women Sharing God's Heart (Jaye Martin, 1999).
Photo is a print by Kyle Steed found at steedagrams.com.

a golden sense

"The music is all around us. All we have to do is listen." –"August's Rhapsody," August Rush (Motion Picture Soundtrack)
This past Monday, as I left class on a mission to find water, a classmate stopped me to ask a personal question. The genuine sincerity of her response as I answered struck me. When we left our conversation, I felt that I could trust her.

How could I trust so quickly? I think it is because of the way she listened.

From the Bible's stories, we know that our God listens. In Luke 2:46-47, Mary and Joseph search for 12-year-old Jesus after a Passover feast in Jerusalem:

"After three days, they found Him in the temple complex sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all those who heard Him were astounded at His understanding and His answers."

My roommate helped me find the Greek word for "astonish." It is pronounced existemi, and it means "to amaze... to astound out of one's senses."

In Luke's story, we see Jesus sitting with these men who taught the Scriptures, and they are amazed by this young boy's wisdom and understanding. John Maxwell explains in The Maxwell Leadership Bible, "He [Jesus] knew that to connect with people's hearts, He had to use His ears."

By listening to others, we can speak volumes about Christ's love. When the Holy Spirit shows us opportunities to use our gift of hearing, I pray that we show Christ's astonishing wisdom and love for others.

Do you have a story about the power of listening?

(Picure from marinebio.org)