August 20, Hearing God’s Voice

Today’s reading: Psalms 96-100

“Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel was among those who called on his name; they called on the Lord and he answered them. He spoke to them from the pillar of cloud; they kept his statutes and the decrees he gave them” - Psalm 99:6-7.

Moses, Aaron, and Samuel called on the Lord and He answered them. God is always answering, but we are not always listening. When we hear, sometimes we mistake His voice for something or someone else. Take for example the story in John 12 when Jesus said, “Father, glorify your name!” (John 12:29b). In response to Jesus’ prayer, this is what happened: “Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.’ The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him. Jesus said, ‘This voice was for your benefit, not mine’” (John 12:30). The people who heard the voice did not recognize it because they were not really expecting to hear His voice. Therefore, if you say, “If only God would speak to me” about this or that, there is no guarantee you will hear God’s answer unless you really want to hear it! Where are you having trouble hearing God’s voice because of your inner turmoil or doubt? Do you really expect to hear? Are you tuning all your attention to hear, or are you holding back?

 

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