LISTEN

God said to Israel, "Pay heed to me and listen, and your souls will live!" (Isaiah 55:3).  It is tremendously important to be able to turn to God with one's whole being and to believe that He will speak.  If we hear nothing from God for a long time, it may be because there is something between us and heaven - perhaps we lack love for our brother, or we are at odds with someone.  If this is the case, our waiting is in vain.  Of course, we cannot expect answers from God after only five minutes of silence.  Think how long Jesus Himself sometimes had to wait. But the more our lives belong to Christ, and the deeper is our relationship with Him, the more quickly, He will answer us, and the more quickly He can use us because He knows that there is someone who is completely ready for Him.

THE SPARROW

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?  Yet none of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. – Matthew 10:29

Sparrows are pretty insignificant in the kingdom of feathered friends, yet it is amazing how they prominently fit into the language of the Bible.  Jesus often spoke of sparrows, trying to help people understand that God takes note of them, and that people are of greater value than the sparrows of the heaven.

The Lord said, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?  Yet none of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.  And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.  So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:29-31).

A lot of us can relate to the sparrows. We spent our lives going from one paycheck to the next; digging out an existence.  We flit from one task to the next, doing the best we can with what we’ve got.

How beautiful that Jesus used the sparrow as an object lesson, which teaches us that we may not soar with the eagles or strut with the peacocks, but we are important to our Heavenly Father.  Jesus put it like this:  “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet our heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not much more valuable than they?  Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to His life?”  (Matthew 6:26,27).

The next time you hear the chirp of a sparrow, or see one hopping from limb to limb outside your window, remind yourself that his common of birds, is important to our Heavenly Father.  So are you.

PUT IT ON HOLD

When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise. – Proverbs 10:19

With our mouths we can make life good or render it nearly intolerable.  This particular proverb urges us to hold our tongue.

A careless word, a thoughtless comment, an angry retort, a jealous jab – all come from the mouth.

Don’t we often just say what we think?  Don’t we often simply allow our emotions and passions to control our tongues and inflict injury with our words?  To avoid causing so much injury, we basically need to hold our tongues.  But does it do any good to try to manage our tongues by ourselves?

The best way to hold our tongues is to admit we cannot do it ourselves, and to surrender them to the One who can.  Tongues that are on hold, in the grip not of our determination but of divine love, are helpful, healing tongues, held by God.  The only way to hold our tongue successfully is to let God hold it – and use it.

LEARNING TO HEAR FROM GOD

Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord.  The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him….The Lord called Samuel a third time, and Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. - 1 Samuel 3:7-8

Samuel grew into one of the greatest spiritual leaders the Israelites ever had.  He was a fearless spokesman for God.  When the people needed direction, Samuel brought a word from God.  When the king needed to hear from God, Samuel was his man.  Samuel walked so closely with God that he never had to wonder what God wanted him to do;  God gave him clear guidance every step of the way.

Perhaps you know a man or woman who, like Samuel, seems to have an inside track with God.  Do you wish you knew God like that?  The Christian life is such that everyone begins at the same place.  Think of the most godly Christians you know.  They started out just like everyone else – as strangers to God.  Every Christian starts out completely disoriented to God.  Every Christian starts out completely disoriented to God.  Samuel was no exception.  When God first called out to him, Samuel didn’t even recognize who was speaking!  He assumed it was the priest Eli.  Samuel had to learn how to recognize God’s voice and to understand what God was saying to him, just like everyone else.  After years of spending time with God, Samuel came to recognize his voice instantly.

There is no other way to learn how to identify God’s voice than to spend time talking with him.  The exciting thing is that you have the same opportunity as the greatest spiritual giants you know.  God will speak to you just as he speaks to them.  Samuel took advantage of every opportunity he had to get to know God.  As a result, God did great things through Samuel’s life.  You may not always recognize God’s voice now, but continue spending time with him.  The day will come when you won’t have to wonder if it’s God speaking.  You’ll know who it is.

WHY ARE YOU ANGRY?

“Sin is crouching at your door, it desires to have you, but you must master it.”

-  Genesis 4:7

God tells us that when we are angry, sin is crouching at our door.  In other words, anger is like a wild animal ready to jump out and overtake us.  It’s like a lion, crouching in tall grass, ready to pounce on its unsuspecting prey.

Anger can take control of us and even try to kill the object of our wrath.  Proverbs 18:14 asks,  “A crushed spirit who can bear?  How many people have we wounded because we’ve become angry and lashed out with our tongue?  The Lord warns in Ecclesiastes 7:9, “Do not quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.”  We may feel powerful when we’re angry, but deep down we know it’s mainly to cover up our weaknesses.

Someone has said that we live in an age of rage.  On our highways we witness road rage almost everyday.  People do and say terrible things to each other in anger.  On the news headlines since last week is the “Thrilla in NAIA”.  Two warring parties, the Tulfos and the Santiagos wrecking each other, aiming to destroy the other’s credibility, are racing to gain public’s sympathy.  Truly, when you walk down the hallways, you see anger everywhere.

God comes to us today and asks, “Why are you angry?” (Genesis 4:6).  God asks this question to get at the root of our problems.  He wants us to heal our hearts inflicted by others.  And we can trust Him to put a leash on the sin crouching at our door.

My prayer for today is that may the Lord help us to master our anger.  Teach us patience and self-control so that our responses to others do not injure or destroy them.

Good day and God bless you, in Jesus’ name.

JUST LIKE US

Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed…..and the heavens gave rain. – James 5:17-18

Elijah made kings tremble, ate food delivered by birds, raised the dead, called fire from heaven, directed weather patterns, and outran a king’s chariot.  And yet he was also “a man just like us.”  Isn’t that description a bit hard to swallow? Elijah sounds like a superhero – one of a kind, totally unlike any of us.  But Elijah had the same human nature we have, and prayed to the same God we can pray to.  God answered Elijah’s prayers, and God will answer our prayers.

“The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.  Elijah was a man just like us.  He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain…..Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain.” (James 5:16-18). 

Elijah did not pray for his own wish list.  He prayed for what God promised.  That’s why his prayers were so effective.  God had told Elijah, “I will send rain on the land” (1 Kings 18:1).  So, on a clear day with no thunder, Elijah told Ahab, “There is the sound of a heavy rain.”  Then Elijah prayed and kept on praying until a tiny cloud appeared.  His faith saw not the smallness of the cloud but the certainty of God’s promise, and he knew the downpour was near.

If, like Elijah, we are right with God, and if we base our prayers on God’s promises and watch in faith for God’s answers, our prayers will be powerful and effective.

Today, my prayer is that God will give us ears to hear His Word and faith to trust His promises.  May He teach us to pray as ordinary people, expecting great things from our extraordinary GOD.