STOP. . . LISTEN !

Summer was upon us and so were the sounds of the season. The chirping of crickets was my favorite, as the ground was warm and they were active.

One day, while hoeing my garden plot, my daughter yelled, “Stop!” I kept on hoeing. She yelled at me again to stop but I kept right on with my work, thinking she was worried that I was going to hurt the plants as I swung that hoe.

Suddenly my daughter took matters into her own hands, reaching down to rescue the largest cricket I’ve ever seen. I was so glad, then, to stop.

I wonder . . . why hadn’t I heeded when my daughter yelled “Stop” the first and then the second time. Why did I stop only when I could see the reason why.

Do we often ignore God’s words, failing to heed and obey until we can see clearly the reason why? I hope not. Our heart’s desire should be to obey just because He is God, not needing to know the reason behind His directions.

Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people; and walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you. Jeremiah 7:23

Heavenly Father, please help me to hear Your voice and obey even if I don’t see the reason why. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

WHEN GOD SAYS STOP

Have you ever held a job or been involved in volunteer work which, you felt, the Lord was drawing to a close for you? Yet you hated to leave
. . . people were relying on you, the work was enjoyable, the hours were perfect. Yet God’s still, small voice kept urging you to withdraw.

We are usually great at putting ourselves into action when we think we have a go-ahead from the Lord. Some of us, however, are a little slow at listening to God when He says “Stop!”

What a familiar scene it is, though. As we continue to ignore God’s “Stop,” our days become busier and busier. Our stress level continues to increase. Only then do we realize that something is amiss. Finally we decide to listen to God’s insistent voice.

Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today when you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts . . . . Hebrews 3:7-8

Heavenly Father, please open my heart to listen more closely to You, especially when you say “Stop!” In Jesus’ name. Amen.

STOP, ASK, LISTEN

How many times, day by day, do we make decisions and choices without even asking the Lord His desire for us? We just seem to bounce from one activity to the next. “This” sounds good so we become involved. “ That” sounds fun so, of course, we do it. We don’t stop and turn to Him to listen to what He may say. God’s voice is completely ignored.

Eventually, as activities and responsibilities stack up, the avalanche is ready to tumble - all landing on us. We don’t have a clue how we ended up so far off His path. All we know is that our life is out of balance, not in line with what the Creator intended.

Realization comes. We see that we haven’t been going to the Lord concerning any of the details of our lives - big or small. We know it is time to say,

“Speak, Lord, for thy servant hears.” I Samuel 3:10

May we, daily, seek the Lord’s divine directives in all things. Our feet will firmly march forward on His path if we will only stop, ask Him and open our hearts to hear.

Heavenly Father, please forgive me for trying to live life without turning to You for direction. Please slow me down so that I ask for Your thoughts on all matters - big and small. In Jesus’ name. Amen.