Monday, 4-Jan-2016 - Are You Listening?

Have you ever heard the phrase, "Are you listening to me?"  How often do we get upset at God because things aren't going our way?  Probably more often than naught.  But, do we really listen to what God is telling us?  Or, are we too busy consumed with ourselves and our problems to pay any attention to God?

I find myself often asking God for the bigger things, or when I am in trouble or upset.  I believe that God cares for all of us and for all those little mundane details that most people wouldn't care about.  How are your listening skills?  I know for me, I am learning a great deal about this, seeing how God is working all around me and seeing what He desires from me.

If we look closely, God is speaking to us all the time.  Sometimes it's directly through those fine whispers in your mind.  Other times, it's popping out of the words of the Bible straight to your heart & soul.  While, other times, it is through the beauty of creation, or the events or circumstances that we find ourselves in.

Afterall, God created us with 2 ears and only 1 mouth.  I find it interesting that our ears are to the sides of our heads, which enables us to have pretty good peripheral hearing.  If both the ears were attached to only either the front or back of our heads, we would have less surround sound ability.

I think we often miss out so much from God by not listening.  Let's see if we can tune our ears to what He is saying and let Him help guide and direct our lives.  Not easy, but definitely something that we can strive for.

Proverbs 1:5 says, "let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance"

Tues, 15-Apr-2014 - Undivided Attention

These are the characters that stand for "listen" in Chinese, and this is what it is broken down.  To truly listen, you must participate - YOU.  You must first listen with your ears.  You have two of them.  Amazingly, there is no portion of these characters that tell you to listen with your mouth, right?  You also listen with your eyes, because you not only hear with your ears, but see with your eyes and with the eyes, you can focus.  And to truly listen attentively, you do it with your heart.

To give undivided attention, YOU must participate with your heart, ears, and eyes.  As I reflect on this, it makes me think that I still am not too good of a listener and must really focus.  Do I give God my undivided attention?  Sometimes I honestly and sincerely think I do, but when I step back, realize that is not the case.

Sometimes I listen so desperately when I want things to happen, but I fail to see how God is speaking to me.  Or, my heart desires something else or maybe I'm listening to the wrong things, or seeing the wrong things.  The heart, ears, and eyes must all be directed and focused in the right direction, in conjunction with each other.

One of the things my husband attempts to help me with is to really listen and not get distracted by the many things that come through my mind.  So active listening really takes a great deal.

What happens when we really listen with undivided attention?  I wonder how our lives will change because if we listened in such a manner, I would presume that we would be moved to action rather than live in procrastination or stagnation, or just limping by.

God, I want YOUR heart to be my heart.  I know You God, You speak every day.  Forgive me, because I let all the cares of the world distract me from You.  You alone deserve our undivided attention.  That doesn't mean we have to go live as monks or nuns, but as we go through our day whether at work, home, or elsewhere, that our thoughts, our actions dwell on the true living God and we want our actions, thoughts to reflect who God is, not the egotistical self.

Wed, 23-Oct-2013 -- God is at Work, Are You Listening?

a photo by World Bank Photo Collection on Flickr.

It's been quite awhile since I've posted anything to this blog and it's not that God hasn't been working.  He's been working so much.  Some of it has been really fun and exciting, other parts have been rather painful.  But, the thing is, all of it, spiritually is really exciting because GOD is at WORK in my life.  God is always talking, always at work whether we realize it or not.

When we look around us, especially me, sometimes I see things in my life I just absolutely love and other things, pain me.  Why is that?  I don't know that I have all the answers or even any, but from my perspective, God is our ultimate teacher and He's a very patient, loving one that is in control, sees all, understands all.

It truly amazes me how some things turn out or work, some things had to have happened many years ago in order for something right now to be happening.  I've been doing my quiet times the past couple weeks on Trust because God wants to take me to a new level in my Trust.  I started off my studying of this topic from the Concordance of my Life Applications Bible, which I've had for more than 20 years.

It seems that each day that I go through stuff from there, it is exactly what I've been dealing with in my personal life and God has been speaking it through my husband.  Sometimes we see how God needs to work in other's lives (the controlling and judging parts of us), but often when we point at someone else for what could be done, really we should be looking into our own lives to see how we are probably even worse culprits of these things.  That is exactly what God is revealing to me.

There have been so many spiritual things God has been doing in my life over these past months, that it isn't even really funny and that I've needed to document.  Time has been sparse or I just haven't felt like doing it.  For that, I'm really sorry because I miss out on sharing my testimony as to what God is doing.

Look around to see how God may be working in your life.  Do you see a lot of complaining, whining people?  Do you yourself complain and whine a lot?  Our are you in a situation that requires you to attentively listen a lot?  I've been doing a lot of work for a company that requires me to really listen, to pay close attention and sometimes I find that I'm just not hearing that well and have to repeat things.  I never realized that listening, truly listening was that challenging.  After all, I thought I wasn't too bad, but found out I really stunk at listening.  So, God gives me work that requires me every day to intentionally listen and listen intently, to pay attention.

I've heard my husband or kids ask me, "Are you listening?  Are you paying attention?"  Sometimes I just get so wrapped up in my own thoughts, that I really am doing neither.  I took a prophecy class in Aug/Sep'13 and it involves greatly listening to what God is saying.  Last Sunday, one of the pastors of our church preached, and the topic was also on listening.  How we listen to others like our spouse, our children, those closest to us, is how we listen to God.

I find sometimes with familiarity or taking them for granted, I don't listen as well.  How awful is that?  That was really convicting to see that God is always speaking to me, but that most of the time, I fail to hear Him because of my own fleshly junk.  So, over the days, weeks, months ahead, I have begun to intentionally focus on improving drastically my listening skills with others, especially my husband and children, and I wonder how that will impact my relationship with God.

God is trying to teach you.  Are you listening intentionally and obeying?