Keep Listening

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Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you to fear the Lord [with awe-inspired reverence and worship Him with obedience]. (Psalm 34:11)

​ A SPECIAL LISTENING ALERT

Years ago, I received a precious gift from the Lord. I could be anywhere and suddenly hear chimes – a silvery flicker, a shimmering sound – just on the edge of my natural senses. After acknowledging the sound, I would sense a word, a phrase, a message in my spirit. Once this had happened a few times, I realized that I would hear the sound when the Lord had something to share with me.

DID I GET TOO BUSY?

Life can get overfilled so easily with the voices and concerns of others. I maintained my regular morning quiet times but sensed a new distance from the Lord. I came to Him in prayer:

Lord, You used to call me with a ring, and I would answer, “Here am I,” much like picking up the telephone or opening a door.

Have I grown too accustomed or familiar? Do I rely on the gift instead of the Giver? Has the easy access, the familiar gate into Your presence, made me lazy?

No, You have not stopped speaking, but more often than not, You wait until I ask.

I hear You in the breeze, the beat of my heart, the scratching of a pen on crisp pages of my journal, the sky streaming golden at day’s end, the warmth of a house shut tight against the wind, and my husband’s “I love you.” I hear You in the “yes, Yes, YES.” that rises in my spirit when I read Your eternal promises, Your love letter written for me, for all Your children.

I will seek. I will wait. I will listen still – but speak, Lord.

“And the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ Then Samuel answered, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.’” (1 Samuel 3:10 )

THE LORD’S REPLY

In the quiet, keep listening. When it is difficult to hear Me, it may be when I have the most to say. Just be little one. Just be.

You are Mine, and I know what I’m doing. I will direct – I am directing – your every step.

Breathe, surrender, go limp like a marionette. Allow the Master to pull the strings. Yes, you were trained to believe it is wrong, weak, and foolish to be a puppet – but what better hand should control your life?

In My time, in My way, for My glory, your life will accomplish what I desire. I Am, so relax, be, and let Me be Me.

I am not calling you to laziness. No, I tell you there is work to do, but in My strength – and when our purposes collide, when we work as one, there is a release of great passion and joy.

Keep listening.

NATURAL HEARING LOSS

I noticed difficulty with my natural hearing that worsened over the years. I wrote it off as aging until it seriously impacted my daily life.

As I was learning to adapt to the profound and permanent loss in my left ear, I sensed the Lord assuring me that though my natural hearing was impaired, my spiritual hearing could continue to increase.

“Keep listening.”

I remember the way You used to speak to me
bold, bright brush strokes, sharp
contrast against the dark

undeniable, loud, impossible
to mistake for another

what was small, hard
secret within, warmed
at Your touch, floods
of light spilled
into every corner

now You speak to me, quiet
teaching me how to listen