Shhh....do you hear that?

I have seen some majestic waterfalls, but I know there are even more out there to be discovered. One thing that really catches my attention with these huge cascades of water is their intense sound. The thundering of the water as it cascades, falling upon rocks below, echoing throughout the canyons in which they dwell - it just roars and almost deafens one who gets too close. Have you heard the term, "Talk is cheap"? It means it is easier to talk ABOUT something than to do it! Another meaning would be it is easier to talk ABOUT someone than to do something for them. We could say talk is "cheap" in many respects - if our words aren't a sincere revelation of our motives (inner heart), they are simply have no real "force" behind them. They may 'thunder and roll', but do they carry any really power behind them? The words that 'cascade' from our lips should be to build up - not tear down. They should be to lift exalted praise to the one who has all the power to uphold us!

Let praise cascade off my lips; after all, you've taught me the truth about life! And let your promises ring from my tongue; every order you've given is right. Put your hand out and steady me since I've chosen to live by your counsel. (Psalm 119:171-173)

I have friends who speak continuously when we are together. Other simply are happy to sit and enjoy times of quiet with me, occasionally bringing some discussion into the quiet, but it is not the main "theme" of our time together. I was once told we could "gauge" the comfort of an individual in a relationship by their need to continually make "small talk" in our time together. As my relationships have matured, the need to always be engaged in conversation has decreased. So, I think this observation may actually be true. You know what? My comfort with God has grown deeper over the years, allowing me to be quite comfortable just sitting in his presence, taking in his grace, and just not needing to say a thing. Yet, there are times when my lips must exalt him and my heart cry out. Both are perfectly right - both are perfectly natural! How do you find your time with the Lord? Is it a continual conversation, barely pausing for a breath? Is there a sense of "filling" space with conversation? If so, you might find you are a little concerned about the "silence"! Why? It may be the silence frightens you because you have never learned the value of just spending "time" with each other. Whenever I have paused my talking TO God long enough, I begin to "take in" things around me purposefully revealed by his hand.

On a recent fishing trip, I just sat and enjoyed the sounds, sights, and simple beauty around me. When I sat there a while, I began to look at the "floor" of the creek bed and forest just beyond it. The fallen branches created little havens for the creatures - I knew they were there even when I did not see them. Birds pecked underneath them, and if I had looked a little further, I bet I would have found that insects made a home there, too. In short order, God began to show me the purpose God has for the "broken". The trees were filled with leaves, gently whispering the ebbs and flow of the breezes. The floor of the forest was lined with fallen leaves, broken branches, and fallen seed pods. In terms of looking at the trees or the forest floor, one might quickly say the trees still served a purpose - they were full of the evidence of life! Yet, when we really consider the floor, guess what we see? You got it! Life! Even in what appeared to have been 'discarded' by the trees (those fallen leaves, the broken branches, and the drying seed pods), there was an immense purpose! The leaves provided protection to the roots during the heat of summer. The fallen branches acted as resting spots for the creatures scurrying about. The drying pods would be laid up for the leaner times by little forest critters. Each held a purpose far greater than evident by just a cursory glance.

The same is true of each of us - we serve a purpose not always evident on the surface. In the quiet of discovery, our purpose becomes apparent. What impressed me most in my time of listening to God, being open to his teaching, was the truth that in death God produces the basis for life! It was in death his Son provided the basis for eternal life with God. It is in death our hope begins! Praise cascades from the lips of one who realizes this truth to be true in their lives! In the quietness of praise, the truths of God become true in our lives. Did you ever think there was a purpose in "quiet" praise? Yep! Not every moment with God needs to be filled with words! Sometimes the greatest message is in the quiet we enjoy together! So, speak on God! We are quiet now. Just being quiet!

Be quiet - - - very, very quiet...and hear

What or who do you listen to because you feel you "have to"? For some of us, it is our parents - we listen because we know we are to respect them and to listen to their wisdom. For others of us, it is our supervisors - because they are the ones who guide our days and provide that paycheck at the end of the week. For still others, we listen to no one and nothing, other than our own minds and hearts. How's that one been working out for you? I know it didn't work out for me! My heart and mind doesn't always know what it wants - it can be rather indecisive and vacillate with the ups and downs of what is going on around me. It isn't worth listening to sin tell us what to do - and it isn't worth thinking our own mind will actually always know how we are to respond. We need to be aware of the presence of God in our lives, learning to listen to him FIRST and foremost. Only then will we experience all the glory of the goodness he has prepared for us!

But now that you’ve found you don’t have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God’s gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master. (Romans 6:23 MSG)

All manner of sin will attempt to tell us what to do - from the voice of a well-meaning 'friend' misguiding us by some 'advice' they have for us, to the outright listening to the appeals of our own fleshly lusts and desires. We don't have to listen to either of them - we can turn a deaf ear to them, politely dismiss them, and move on. We don't have to 'do as we are told' when it comes to listening to sin's voice any longer - because we have discovered what it means to really listen to God's voice. There are times when people ask me how they know they are hearing God's voice in their lives. I'd have to say this - is what you are being told consistent with what scripture reveals about God and his ways? Is what you are being asked to do in alignment with the principles of grace and truth? If not, it isn't God's voice! It is either clearly some other voice, or a mixture of a good message combined with a not so wholesome one!

If we want a 'put together' life - one that is whole and consistent, we need to learn to listen for that consistency in what we are hearing. The consistency of alignment with the principles of grace and truth we find revealed in the Word of God. Some ask what to do when they cannot find a specific example of what they need an answer to in their lives within the explored scriptures. I'd have to say it is then a matter of conscience. God actually gave us that little tool to help us when we don't have any other 'judgment' factor that seems to address the issue. If there is any 'niggling' to do or say something that is against your conscience, it is wrong for you! It isn't the voice you want to follow. Our conscience doesn't 'override' scripture, but it can help us when we don't clearly find the specific issue addressed within scripture.

The good news is that we have a good God tell us how to live. We don't have to be confused about all the other voices in our lives - for his is the clearest, simplest, and quietest! It is quiet because it operates in an atmosphere of peace. Jesus spoke to the brewing storms to be still - only then did the disciples know it was him and receive from him that day. He spoke to the disease that created havoc in lives to be gone - only then did the disease-riddled soul hear the truth in his voice. There are times when Jesus needs us to shut out all the other voices - even when they 'storm' around us. Only then will we truly hear and understand his purposes. Just sayin!

Shhhhhhhhh.......

Our challenge is NOT in having the right advice to offer - it is allowing enough time to pass for the other person to actually WANT our advice! When I was in Bible College, one of the classes we took was designed to give us the skills to "listen" - really intent, serious listening. It was probably the longest and hardest semester learning the skills of biblical counseling - beginning with the skills of listening and ending with the skills of, oh yeah....listening. What was that all about? Somewhere along the way, our professors had learned that answering before listening is both stupid and rude. People were going to want to confide in us, hard things would be shared, and answers would be sought - but we had to learn to hear them out before offering the advice we were just chatting at the bit to get out!

Answering before listening is both stupid and rude. (Proverbs 18:13)

The failure to listen long enough or allow the time to build the trust that would be required to really share the issues could result in a wrong perception of the issues and a truly faulty answer to the problem. That would benefit no one. The entire eighteenth chapter of Proverbs is about words - how a fool speaks in ramblings and without thought; how a few words of gossip are nothing more than cheap words that really turn your stomach in the end; or teaching about how fights are started by the words that are chosen - be it your words or the other guy's. This is only one chapter of the Bible, and it has so much to say about what comes out of our mouth!

God has much to say about how we speak, what we listen to, and when it is that we are to speak or be silent. He commends us for bringing forth truth instead of lies. He exhorts us to listen before we speak. He encourages us to consider the audience and the timing of the message before we bring it. It must be an important thing for us to learn how to listen if God speaks to us so much about our speech and about our listening ears and responsive hearts! Words are weapons or wealth - they have the power to heal and the power to restore - but a lot depends on who is wielding the weapon or sharing the wealth.

We are encouraged to learn the skill of being good listeners. That may mean that we have to learn to NOT speak - something we might just benefit more from than any other instruction we embrace from scripture! I was often taught that all I think may be true, but not all I think needs to be spoken (although I struggle with keeping my thoughts inside sometimes). I need to give others time to come to a place of clarity in their thinking - eventually they will come to a place of sharing that may include the things I knew before they even said it. If that is so, they needed that time in order to be ready for the answer God wants them to receive. This is called wisdom - learning to speak when the time is appropriate.

I have learned that words do more than describe a situation - they expose a heart. The 'skill' comes in allowing the other person enough time to connect with their heart. When we take the time to truly listen, we give them the time they need to make that connection themselves. You'd be surprised what you learn about the heart of another when you give them time and opportunity to share it without jumping in to offer advice at the first opportunity. Our challenge is NOT in having the right advice to offer - it is allowing enough time to pass for the other person to actually WANT our advice - godly wisdom comes in allowing the time for the other person to be ready to receive that advice! So, tune up those listening ears and shut off that constant flow of "free speech". It is time to listen! Just sayin!

Meditate on this

May the words that come out of my mouth and the musings of my heart meet with Your gracious approval, O Eternal, my Rock, O Eternal, my Redeemer. (Psalm 19:14 VOICE)

How would you describe the "musings of your heart"? For many of us these are unfulfilled dreams, wishes for things to be a little different than how they are right now, or a change to come that would somehow "kick things into action" in our lives that seem to be at a standstill right now. Did you know the meaning of "musing" is really "meditation"? Did you know the meaning of "meditation" is really the process of spending time in quiet thought? This passage is a prayer - that God would help the one praying it to bring forth words that honor, build up rather than tear down, and reveal the right "meditation" is occurring deep in one's heart.

As I get older, hopefully I am also getting wiser. One of the things I think leads us into developing wisdom in our lives is this process of spending time in quiet thought. I don't always speak what I am thinking, but I do spend a great deal of time in quiet thought. Why? It is the place God helps me sort out all the challenges my brain and emotions are presenting to me in the course of the day. It is the time I am able to consider the various components of the complexity of the situation and see them for what they are - if they are as they seem, or are there other things to be considered before I take a particular course of action. 

I used to hear the word "meditation" and think it requires a yoga mat, incense, and a little mantra of some kind. I have come to appreciate it is merely the musings of my heart, submitted to the counsel of the Holy Spirit dwelling within me. The "process" of meditation isn't the location, the "mood" set, or the "position" one's body assumes. It is the ability to bring the thoughts captive for a moment or two, settle the emotions, and allow the "process" of being quiet to sort out the truth from the untruth, the wisest choice from the others. If you are "anti-meditation", think again. God advocates for us to quiet ourselves - if not outwardly, at least inwardly! The quiet is where we hear his voice!

While I don't advocate that kind of "mantra meditation" practiced by some, I do advocate for the quiet place of meditative thought becoming the place God can bring order out of our chaos. It often catches me off-guard to find I didn't even consider coming at something I have been struggling with in a particular manner until I get quiet long enough to "process the issue" with God's help. It is as though I suddenly see the solution to the problem because he begins to help me see the "order" in the problem. Sometimes it isn't that we don't have the solution to the problem, it is that we don't have the right "order" to the problem. We have things out of sequence and therefore, we are not getting at the solution! God is a God of order. Quieting ourselves long enough to allow him to help us bring the issues we are struggling with into "right order" is certainly not wasted time!  Just sayin!

A little breathing room, please

Have you ever thought of God as "giving you breathing room"?  I never really thought of it this way, but our devotional times are kind of "breathing room".  The time we take to settle ourselves long enough to reflect on God's word and then to begin to allow it to impact us is also providing us with some "breathing room" from the hub-bub of everyday life.  


^3-5 You've always given me breathing room, a place to get away from it all, a lifetime pass to your safe-house, an open invitation as your guest.  You've always taken me seriously, God, made me welcome among those who know and love you. (Psalm 61:3-5 The Message)


For some time in my life, I looked as my devotional times as "required".  It was taught to me as a "baby Christian" - take time each day to get "quiet" with God.  In those moments, I was to pray, read the Word, and if possible, get something out of the time!  Allegedly - as was reported to me as a new believer - we needed this time or we'd never grow in Christ.  


Now, don't get me wrong - we DO need this time.  Yet, if it is time which we see as "required", we seldom will enjoy it.  It is like eating vegetables when all we want is a candy bar!  We have to see the value in it before we actually begin to enjoy it!  Now, come at this from a different perspective.  If we approach this as David did all those years ago, maybe we will see devotion time a little differently.


He clearly saw it as a time to "escape" the rigors of daily life.  A place to get away from it all.  In fact, he refers to his time with God as a "safe-house".  I don't know about you, but with the way my days go sometime, I need a "safe-house"!  What is the purpose of a "safe-house"?  Doesn't it give the individual nestled inside just a little extra "breathing room" and a chance to "regroup" on life?  If we began to see our devotionals as a time of "catching our breath" a little, I wonder what might come out of those times?


It won't be a long blog today.  I hoped to plant a seed thought about gaining a new perspective on your daily time with God.  Let God give you some "breathing room" today.  Look at what David says next:  "You've always taken me seriously, God, made me welcome among those who know and love you."  God is ready to give you more than "breathing room" -  he is ready to give you "breath" for the journey!

The Circle of Quiet

^12-15 How blessed the man you train, God, the woman you instruct in your Word, providing a circle of quiet within the clamor of evil, while a jail is being built for the wicked. God will never walk away from his people, never desert his precious people.  Rest assured that justice is on its way and every good heart put right. 

(Psalm 94:12-15 The Message)

How blessed the man you train!  How blessed the woman you instruct in your Word!  Awesome words, huh?  Did you know that there are other words for "blessed" in our English vocabulary?  Namely, they are:  Consecrated, Sacred, Holy, Sanctified, Supremely Favored, and Blissfully Happy!  Wow!  Now that says a lot, doesn't it?  The one trained or instructed by God is really a pretty privileged individual!

As I sat in English class during my high school days, one of my most favorite things I learned to do was "diagram" a sentence.  My teacher would remind me that there is always a subject of the sentence, that a whole lot of other "matter" might be contained in that sentence, but it always has a subject!  The subject of our passage today is GOD!  Perhaps you missed that, so I thought I'd point it out to you!  

There is also a concept in constructing a sentence that is called "defining the condition".  In other words, a cause-and-effect relationship is laid out.  For example, "Bring me the remote, and I will change the channel."  The condition is that the remote needs to be in my hand before the channel can be changed.  The desired outcome of the cause-and-effect is that the channel gets to the one that we desire to watch.

Here we have it - the condition - "Be trained by God" and "Let his Word instruct you".  The outcome of the training and instructing - consecration, being made holy, growing in God's favor, and being blissfully content in his love!  To that, I can only shout, "Woohoo!"  Who does the training and instructing - this is the subject - GOD!  

Remember that I said that a sentence might contain other "matter" that gives structure to the sentence?  Well, here is some of that "other matter" that we should not miss from this passage:

- Those that are trained and instructed learn to enjoy the privilege of a "circle of quiet" in their lives!  Have you ever wondered why some people call the time they take to speak with God, enjoy time in his Word, and to praise him their "Quiet Time"?  Maybe the idea stems from this passage!  When all the rest of the world is caught up in the chaos of the "clamor of evil", we can nuzzle up to Jesus and enjoy the "circle of quiet" that his presence provides!

- God does not "walk away" from his people.  In a world filled with all kinds of "deserters", that is a good thing to know!  It does my heart good to realize that God actually pursues me when I am "walking away" from HIM!  Not too many would pursue someone who is fickle enough to turn their back on the best thing going!  Yet, in his intense love for us, he does!

- Justice is on its way!  We may not see it today, but there is a promised arrival!  With its arrival - the good will enjoy the privilege of being "put right". What could that mean?  I think God is reminding us that the picture may be bleak right now, but in the end, he is the one that makes his people shine!  

Just some thoughts for us to ponder today as we go about our busy schedules.  Don't forget to draw into that "circle of quiet" and really let him do the work of training and instructing that comes in those moments.  Those very moments may be what you will hold onto in the chaos of the hours ahead!