Is that Your Father Calling You?

Observing three small grandchildren across the street I see that they often have a hearing problem. They don’t hear their mother when she calls them to supper, calls them to come in or calls them to get back in their own yard. It seems that the ability to hear is closely tied to the enjoyment they are having at the time they are called.  Playing in the creek or over at the neighbor’s house finds them totally deaf!

Then there’s the bone structure problems they have. No kidding! Call them home and they go limp and can barely walk. Tell them they can’t have ice cream till after supper and they almost crawl away from the refrigerator, arms hanging limply in front of them and their heads bent nearly to their chests.

Of course as people grow up they begin to respond much quicker to instruction and don’t display the skeletal problems children so often do.  I mean we’re grownups, so we are quick to obey and walk away from things without giving it a second thought. Right?

God speaks to my heart. It’s pretty easy to ignore God’s voice. We find ourselves in complete abandon to something we enjoy and He speaks softly into our hearts, “Come back to Me”, we flick a hand at our ear and go right back to our fun.  We lose our temper and stay mad and we hear “something” like “really is that the way you should behave?” and we want the anger more than the obedience.  We may feel our hearts being tugged to missionary work, changing jobs, checking on a neighbor, giving an extra dollar. The list goes on. We weigh the situation and often find that we’d just rather not listen to the still small voice trying to woo us to obedience.

We forget that obedience garners reward. Oh not always immediately, but reward does come for those who obey God’s still small voice. There’s punishment for the disobedient as well. Now children usually get grounded or get a spanking for their disobedience. But we believers are punished much worse I do believe. Because eventually we’re going to feel the Holy Spirit’s sting of conviction. We’re going to come to ourselves and realize we’ve messed up. And then we run home to the Father asking His forgiveness and praying that we haven’t lost complete touch with Him.

Just like a child must be trained to walk in obedience to their parents, we believers must train ourselves to walk in obedience to our Heavenly Father. We’re born again, we belong to the Family of God, but we have to learn to “act like it”. We have to train ourselves to listen for God’s voice and quickly follow, quickly answer, quickly respond.  I am still learning to hear Him, how about you?

Oh beloved, what a blessed child of God you are! Not only were you placed into an earthly family, with teaching, learning and growing, you were placed in God’s family! You have a Father who loves you unconditionally, the Son who obeyed all the way to the Cross for your disobedience and the Holy Spirit who keeps you able to listen to God the rest of your lives!  God knows the problems you encounter every day. There are so many things that would steal your joy, steal your heart and cause you to go deaf! But if you will trust the Lord and train yourself to listen to Him, you will find increased strength, increased stamina and multiplied joy and blessings! If you’ve found yourself in the wilderness of disobedience and you’ve quit hearing anything, today is your day to return Home to the Father! He is waiting outside your heart’s door to take you in immediately! He’s been searching for you as though you were a lost child out of earshot. He’s been calling you to repentance, which simply put is turning from your own desires to return to His fellowship!

Oh beloved, run to His Word this morning and hear Him speak: “I love you and I AM for you and that’s what you always need to remember to love Me, obey Me and live for Me alone”.

1 Samuel 15:22 Samuel said, “Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams.

James 1:25 But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.

Isaiah 30:21 Your ears will hear a word behind you, “This is the way, walk in it,” whenever you turn to the right or to the left.

Psalm 86:11 Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; Unite my heart to fear Your name.

God Wants Your Heart First

Marriage can be a wonderful picture of our relationship with Christ. If the marriage, the courtship, the relationship is full of the gifts of the Spirit, it’s easy to return that love.

When Danny asked me out he didn’t call me up and put demands on me. He didn’t order me out with him. He asked and I might say he asked very nicely. Danny’s kindness was a huge draw. He always treated me with tenderness from the beginning.  He was a hunter, a fisherman, a biker and all man. But because he knew how to be nice to me I liked him all the more.

If he’d been harsh or indifferent or demanding I would not have responded so well to him. I don’t like harsh, indifferent and demanding one bit. None of those “virtues” ever makes a person want to obey, toe the mark or submit. None of those qualities draws people, encourages folks or increases trust and fellowship. Rather they cause avoidance.

God is the Lord of Heaven and Earth. He is to be worshiped and revered. He calls us to repentance as we give our lives and hearts to Him. But He does not beat us over the head. He does not tell us we’re useless, worthless or unredeemable. We are all that without Him, but He does not bring up our worthlessness and push us to obey with an iron fist.

Instead His love woos us to complete surrender. The sweetest devotion is between two who love one another without reservation.  God loves us without reservation. And He wants us to love Him the same. When the Lord and a sinner like you and me meet with the grace and faith of the Cross we are overcome.  We are undone.  We realize our own state of affairs and we cry out to Him. And greater than the greatest earthly husband, He sweeps down to our level and scoops us into His arms, the very ones that were spread on the Cross to show His love for us.

Maybe you’ve been rebuffed by someone who should have been kind to you. You may have been in a relationship where there is no freedom to fail or to shine. You may have heard that God is watching you and will get you if you don’t straighten up and fly right. You could be afraid to truly come near to God for you have been afraid He will know the real you and discard you, disown you or worse. Maybe the enemy of your soul has called you out, beat you up and left you without hope. But he is a liar and the father of all lies.

Oh beloved, God does indeed have a plan and He does want your obedience, for His Word says to obey is better than sacrifice. But first He wants your heart. He is wooing you this very moment, speaking His love Words into your heart. His voice is gentle and calm and beckoning. He says to you this morning, I AM your greatest love. I AM your staunchest ally. I AM everything you are not and yet I AM willing to share all of my nature with you. Everything I do I AM doing for love.  When I speak your name into your heart you will never have to fear for I AM always calling you in love.

Won’t you trust Him today? Won’t you give Him your heart and mind? Won’t you stop a moment and quit running from the very One Who loves you beyond all belief? Let Him show you through His Word that He loves you and He’s for you and that beloved is why you can follow Him, obey Him as you live in the light of His Word.

Psalm 89:15 Happy are those who hear the joyful call to worship, for they will walk in the light of your presence, LORD.

Psalm 44:3 They did not conquer the land with their swords; it was not their own strong arm that gave them victory. It was Your right hand and strong arm and the blinding light from Your face that helped them, for You loved them.

Psalm 80:3 Turn us again to Yourself, O God. Make Your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved.

Isaiah 43:1 But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you. O Israel, the one who formed you says, Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine.

Psalm 139:1-6 O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel and when I rest at home.  You know everything I do. You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord. You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!

Feeling Unfocused? It's Time to Line Up!

Remember when we were kids, the teacher said this phrase often, “Line up!”  We lined up to go outside, to go to the cafeteria, to be dismissed at the end of the day and more.  Sometimes the teacher would put her finger to her lips designating that we needed to get quiet so we could hear her instructions. Other times she might dim the lights to get our attention.  Some kids found it easier to stand still in line than others. If you couldn't line up the way she expected you to, then you might even get your name called out. “Johnny, I said line up.”  Teachers knew each of us by name and I’m sure they knew our personalities, our problems and our uniqueness. To not line up could cause delays, caused embarrassment and even trouble.  Sometimes a child would be unruly or disruptive and miss the teacher’s instructions altogether. They might miss the blessing of play time and have to stay indoors to learn to listen better. The quicker we lined up the quicker we were able to move on to our next destination.  This was especially important for recess!

We have a Teacher Who wants to instruct us and teach us in the way we should go. His plans are flawless, His instructions are faultless and His desires for us are picture-perfect. All He asks us to do is “Line up” with His Instructions.  He speaks to our hearts and at times we listen quickly and move on to the next step. Other times we falter and dawdle and wonder if we should. We can be unruly and unfocused which could cause delays in our blessings.  This Marvelous Teacher Who loves us perfectly may need to sit us down so that we can learn to listen to Him better.  All in all, His plans for us are so wonderful that His instructions become our best track and our quick obedience to His Words is for our absolute best and His absolute Glory!

Oh beloved, it’s time to line up! Line up with God’s Word. Are you having problems seeing the road ahead? Are you wondering which way God wants you to travel?  Are you wondering if you can make it? Maybe you have been in the struggle of your life and you don’t know what you will do. You've read the newspaper, you've seen the headlines, and you know your own situation so well. You feel lost, discouraged, desperate and alone. But God’s Word says you are more than your situation. You are more than the news. You are more than the things going on in your life. As He calls you into His presence and you respond those things that were your focus fade away as you live in the light of His Truth.  Open His Book of Truth and read about His loved ones and see – even those who have been losing are winners, even those who have been drowning will be pulled from the water, even those who have lost loved ones and friends and family will never be alone. Strength and honor and victory belong to you! Line up with God’s Word and you will live in His Truth – that you are loved, that you are cared for, that you are His beloved! And that’s all that really matters!

2 Corinthians 10:5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, 

James 1:4 But let endurance and steadfastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work, so that you may be [people] perfectly and fully developed [with no defects], lacking in nothing. AMP

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. NAS