God is LIVE!

March 20, 2020

Here’s a thought for the day …

Psalm 91:15 – He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;

        If you asked my wife what is at the top of her “Most Frustrating Things That I Do” list, her answer would be this … “When Wayne doesn’t answer me when I ask him a question.”  Why?  Because she is looking for an answer?  Possibly.  Because she wants my undivided attention at that moment?  Probably.  Because she wants to know that I care enough to give her my attention.  CERTAINLY!

What I love about God’s response in Psalm 91:15 is His promise to us.  He says, that, “he (meaning us) shall call upon Me (meaning Him), and I WILL answer him.”  Can I propose that a natural byproduct of what we have been discussing, which is setting your love upon God and knowing His name, is calling upon Him.  The phrase “He shall call” is the word qara’ in Hebrew and means to “cry out (for help), to call (with the name of God), to proclaim.”  Calling upon the Lord is the action to the knowing of His name.

What is so comforting and strengthening is that God doesn’t say “I may answer you” or “at the next commercial break I’ll respond”, He says “I will answer you.”  God isn’t “ghosting” us.  At the very heart of relationship is communication.  It’s the expression and receiving of ideas, feelings and desires.

The God we pray to is not only attentive to our voice, He wants to respond to it.

        He wants to hear our hearts and in turn allow us to hear His.  I often hear that one of the greatest struggles for people in their walk with the Lord is hearing His voice.  I can understand why that would be a struggle.  Relationships require 2-way communication.  Using my earlier analogy, Heidi wants to know that I care enough, not only to listen to her, but to respond to her question, concern or thought.  What do we do in times like this where it’s so important to grasp this promise God has given us?

        Perhaps we need to start by turning down the sound of the distractions around us and turn our attention towards Him.  Let’s face it, there is so much noise going on all around us.  We live in a culture that is constantly trying to stimulate us to consume and it becomes increasingly harder and harder to “be still and know.”  On top of that, I often wonder how comfortable we are with silence these days.  Question … how much time do you truly devote to stillness?  Still your thoughts.  Still your emotions.  Still your desires.  Still your will.

Knowing is a byproduct of stillness.

        Then we could tune into His Word and what He is communicating to us.  In the bible, God says He would confirm His Word with 2 or 3 witnesses.  Translation … He wants to make this easy for us.  He wants us to know that He has spoken.  While there are many ways God can speak to us, the two that come to mind right away … His Word (the bible) and the Holy Spirit (His helper).

Psalm 119:15 – Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

John 16:13 – But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

        Lastly, we acknowledge His voice by responding.  We can respond with thankfulness.  We can respond with surrender.  We can respond with worship.  And we must respond with obedience.  Acting on what God is saying is the truest way to prove that we’ve heard His heart.

        As we are navigating this global pandemic caused by the Coronavirus, let’s use it to our advantage.  Let’s stay informed of what’s going on around us.  But let’s also be transformed by renewing our mind on God’s Word and tuning in to His voice.  Put down the remote.  Turn off the cell phone.  Close the app.  Disconnect from social media.  Pick up the bible.  God is ‘LIVE’ right now.  Tune in!