Voice of God, Voice of Truth

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, 

and a voice from the cloud said, 

"This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. 

Listen to him!" 

Matthew 17:5 NIV

Girlfriends, somehow many days have passed since my restorative retreat in Indiana. Returning to the chaotic busyness of home while brimming with insight and ideas, I longed to write to you immediately but had to suppress that cry and attend to household duties. Oh energy and awareness, we have only just returned and already you elude me!

How was your past weekend? Even if you did not physically travel, did you have time to review your spiritual map as I suggested in my last blog? I am anxious to hear your reflections. Sharing our life stories is powerful as I rediscovered during this recent sojourn. Listening to another woman weave her way along a path which traverses both peaks and valleys provides opportunity for connection, affirmation, and also fresh insight into our own walk. Indeed, "listen" and "story" were my take-away words from this weekend trip. Yet, upon returning home, I discovered I could not hear nor reflect upon the important "stories" because of all the noise.

Ladies, many voices are calling us to listen. Spouses, children, relatives, friends, co-workers, bosses, teachers, tv personalities, politicians...a cacophony of sound flows into our eardrums daily. We must pray for discernment and wisdom, asking God for clarity and concentration upon the important and life-giving words and for deafness and obliteration of the meaningless and life-sucking utterances. Choose wisely what you take to heart from the stories you hear.

He who has ears, let him hear. 

Matthew 11:15

Even in Jesus's day, a sea of voices called out to the people. Accusing and name-calling, slandering and demeaning, both John the Baptist and Jesus himself were targets as we read in the Matthew 11: 18-19:

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”

Ladies, we must drown out the lies and the crucifying conversation in order to focus upon the blessed, glorifying, and positive conversation of each day. Listen with ears that seek the truth.

The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

John 10: 3-4 

God speaks to us in many ways. In quiet stillness, such as during meditation or walking the peaceful acres of land at the retreat center, His voice is elevated and unimpeded.  But in the boisterous and complicated every day moments of life, His voice is inaudible or unrecognizable to my worldly attuned ears. Jesus, my Shepherd, speaks to me, His sheep. If I choose to listen, I will learn to recognize His voice as He leads me. In time, I will distinguish His voice from among the multitudes. I will hear His Story spoken to me, preparing me for my own story and paving the way to intersect with others.

So what do you think, ladies? Is it time we got God on our ipod? And computer? And cell phone? And television? And magazine racks, bookshelves, and Kindles? If we do not spend time with Him, surround ourselves with His Presence, how else will we recognize His voice? Think of this next time you answer the phone and immediately know with whom you speak by the sound of the voice. Think about your favorite musical artist and how repeatedly listening to his/her music elicits an "Oh I love this song" as soon as your hear the singing. God is asking you to be in a special relationship with Him, distinguishing His voice above all others. How will you respond?

I pray today that you will listen to the Voice of Truth....He has a story to tell you that is greater than any other you will ever hear. His story includes your story. Your story is woven together with others' stories. Listen....listen and hear...God is speaking to YOU. Turn up the volume!

The voice of the Lord is over the waters;

the God of glory thunders,

the Lord thunders over the mighty waters.

The voice of the Lord is powerful;

the voice of the Lord is majestic.

The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars;

the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.

He makes Lebanon skip like a calf,

Sirion like a young wild ox.

The voice of the Lord strikes

with flashes of lightning.

The voice of the Lord shakes the desert;

the Lord shakes the Desert of Kadesh.

The voice of the Lord twists the oaks

and strips the forests bare.

And in his temple all cry, “Glory!” 

Psalm 29: 3-9

Please go to Song of the Day-- I hope you enjoy Casting Crowns, The Voice of Truth. 

Love to all!

TGIFriday and the Tree

TGIFriday! And I do not mean the restaurant!

Quite frankly, Girlfriends, I thank God each day He wakes me up to His beautiful world!

The first little, and I mean little, snowflakes of the impending snowstorm are starting to flutter outside my window as I write to you.

I am so glad I got up early and walked Oreo before the temperatures dropped. I enjoy my mornings walks with our dog. I usually start out in the same direction each day, circling around the corner to the east side of the house and heading north on the sidewalk. I have to tell you, though, that we do not get far past our yard before we make the first stop. Sometimes we halt because Oreo is doing the pee-pee dance! But, usually, I am the one pausing to meditate, while she looks up at me with pleading eyes as if to say, “Who’s walk is this, anyway?”

So what give me pause so shortly into our morning stroll?

A tree.

Not just any tree, mind you. My street, my neighborhood, is full of barren trees lining the streets and in the yards.

So what makes this tree under which I stand so special from November to late March?

Leaves.

Not just any leaves, mind you. DEAD leaves.

This tree is completely cloaked in dead, brown, lifeless leaves.

It isn’t beautiful; this tree is honestly just as much a reminder of the bitter cold, stagnant days of winter as the bare trees surrounding it.

Yet I stop beneath this tree every single day…and LISTEN.

What this tree DOES have, on most days, is a rustling murmur that whispers to me in the silence of the season. As the wind passes through the brown, crinkled foliage, I hear the voice of God calling out to me: “I am still here. Do not believe your eyes—what appears dead is really alive!”

What a way to start my day, ANY day, not just TGIFridays!

My neighbor’s oak tree is God’s auditory reminder that HE IS ALIVE and present in this world, in my world, in YOUR world.

My Girlfriends, God is calling you today; can you hear Him? Have even you stopped to listen? It may only be a whisper, or the wind through the dry leaves of an oak tree. But make no mistake, He is alive, and He wants to be your friend too. God is calling you to a relationship with HIM. Figuratively or literally, whether you are living in a place where the trees are green and the flowers in bloom OR you are passing each day in the dormancy and dead of winter, YOU ARE NOT ALONE! Spend some time with your Lord today. He wrote you the most beautiful love letter ever—better than any Hallmark Valentine’s Day card –it’s The Bible. I urge you today to hear from the greatest love of your life and know that YOU are His love!

In case you need a place to start, and since it is close to Valentine’s Day, I will leave you with some of God’s poetry: a Psalm. How amazing that in Psalm 1, Verses 1-4, God talks to us about WALKING, MEDITATING, A TREE, WITHERING LEAVES, and WIND.  (And even more amazing is the fact that I wrote this note to you BEFORE I looked up a verse to go with it! Glory to God!)

TGIFriday, and Thank God for _____________.

(My answer is GIRLFRIENDS! Love You!)

Scripture:

Psalm 1:1-4

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
² but his delight is in the law^[b] of the LORD,
   and on his law he meditates day and night.

 ³ He is like a tree
   planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
   and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
⁴ The wicked are not so,
   but are like chaff that the wind drives away.