I'm Listening!

I’m Listening!

Recently, I had the privilege of our two youngest grandchildren staying with us for a couple of days.  Their daily routine involves a nap in the afternoon for our three-year-old and two naps a day for the one-year old.  Each day, I followed the schedule, faithfully, putting the little one down upstairs and our grandson in one of the back bedrooms.  I would then turn the television to mute, complete with captions, silence all of the phones, crack the bedroom doors, and make sure the baby monitors were on high.  Why?  I wanted to be sure that if my grandbabies needed me, called out to me, or were frightened nothing would be in the way of my hearing their call to me for help.  My daughter-in-law is much more structured with them than I, out of sheer necessity.  She listens for a particular tone in their voice, gives them time to settle down, or waits to see if they are simply making sweet sleep noises.

I, the paranoid grandmother, on the other hand, am in the room before an entire syllable is out.  The very thought of them awaking in a strange environment and being uncomfortable melts my heart.  I want to hear, intervene, and fix it before they ever finish the sentence.  Though it may seem a bit extreme, okay – maybe it is a bit extreme, it is not totally unbiblical.

One personal discipline about which I am passionate is prayer.  Prayer is so often misunderstood.  We save our big problems for prayer, not wanting to bother God with the little things.  Now, really!  What do you think God sees as big?  What could possibly be big enough that God sits around and says, Wow!  Let Me think on that one.  I’ll get back to you as soon as I work it out.  God’s Word teaches that He loves to be involved in every aspect of our lives.  We are to be God-centered in all that we do.

Think of it as asking His assistance in everything, even tying your shoes.  My husband, who is patient beyond belief, has taught several of our grandchildren how to tie their shoes.  Children are woefully stubborn about doing it themselves, over and over again, until the shoelaces are in huge knots.  Then, and only then, when they cannot possibly get the knots out, much less tie the shoelaces, they will, reluctantly, ask for help.  How often do we treat the Lord God the same way, insisting on trying to do it ourselves, until that area of our life is in such a mess, that we have nowhere to turn but to someone so much more than ourselves?

I Thessalonians 5:17 says that we are to pray without ceasing.  Basically, we are to share our hearts about everything with God, waiting for Him to direct us, to give us peace, to simply accept the burden of our helplessness that we roll off of our shoulders and onto His.  Prayer is not formal, though it is cognizant of approaching the Lord God of the universe.  There are no magic words; it is nothing more than verbalizing where we find ourselves, asking direction beyond the moment, confessing our part in getting there, and acknowledging His power and love to take us above the situation.  It is so much more than conversation with God; it is interaction with God; it is consciousness of His presence and His desire to be involved in every dimension of your life.

It has been said that prayer is the breath of the soul.  A little exercise:  Look at your watch; take a deep breath; now, hold it for thirty seconds.  It feels like eternity, doesn’t it?  That’s how uncomfortable we should be when we do not pray consistently to our Father.  Sometimes, we will have a quiet time, alone with our God, His Word, and the helplessness of our hearts.  Sometimes, as when Peter was walking on the water and began to sink, it may be the very eloquent prayer that Peter offered up:  Help!  At other times, it may be as you are driving to or from work, the store, or home.  However, the one consistent truth is that prayer is a connection with the One who loves us beyond measure.  He is waiting for us to come to Him, to ask Him for direction, to look to Him for relief.

Yes, I left doors cracked when our sons were small so I could hear them.  Yes, when at the beach I could hear my sons’ voices call out Mom above the hundreds of other voices.  Yes, my home has multiple baby monitors.  However, it is not so unlike our Father, who says in Isaiah 65:24, Before they call, I will answer; while they are yet speaking, I will hear.

Have you talked with your Father today?  The door of heaven is cracked; His ears are not deaf that they cannot hear; the Holy Spirit of God is prepared to interpret your cries.  Tell your Daddy all about it.

© 2010 Gerry Sisk

(08/11/10)