KABOOM!!!!
Have you ever had the ‘opportunity to stand a few feet away from an 8-inch gun (that 8 inches is the DIAMETER of the ‘bullet’ (and hence the inside of the gun barrel, not the LENGTH of a pistol) when it is being fired? Unfortunately, I have. For quite a few years (and hence several opportunities) I did just that in the Artillery units to which I was assigned. And hence….hmmm, used that word too many times…now have to wear artificial hearing aids in order to be able to listen to others speak.
One of the questions in The Fayetteville Church’s devotional for today (titled Reflect on 2011) was, "How was your hearing this year?" It was used in conjunction with passages from Isaiah and 1st Kings, and was written to help us ‘hear’ God in our daily lives. There were several examples on how we should ‘Stop and Listen’ to God, and reflect on what we heard these past twelve months.
God’s ‘voice’ (I use that term although I have never heard a ‘voice’ that caused my organ of Corti, located way down below the cochlea and basilar membrane in my ear, to be stimulated in such a manner that my auditory nerves are caused to send impulses to my brain) is much like the ‘KABOOM’ of an 8-inch artillery piece. We can ‘hear’ God through other means than our ears, and several times God appears to YELL at us. He puts obstacles in our way…not to discourage us, but to build us up. He places people in our lives who can help us in our times of struggle. He probably uses angels (I have a fantastic ‘angel story’ to tell for anyone who would like to ‘listen’) to protect us during times of danger and stress. God speaks to us through many, many venues other than our ears.
The Bible is full of God’s shouts. Jesus even tells us eight times in the book of Revelation, "He who has an ear, let him hear." He screams from Heaven for us to stop sinning (read Galatians 5:19-20, for example). He bellows out his warnings about hate, bigotry and pride. (check out Proverbs 11:2, Isaiah 2:17, Amos 6:8 and Obadiah 1-3). He hollers that we are to cast off our sinful behavior lest severe penalties are due. (browse Ezekiel 23:49 and Romans 1:27 ). God’s voice can be many decibels louder than any M110 Howitzer when fired with charge 8 or 9 (only you old-time Artillery folks know how that FEELS!).
Did I hear God in 2011? Absolutely. Many days. Trying to stop certain sins is tough, but I am getting better even though my physical hearing is very much impaired. I wear these mechanical devices just inside my auditory canal to amplify certain pitches (frequencies) that my complicated human ear organ cannot detect by itself. With these devices I am better able to ‘pick up’ and understand voices, tones and other sound waves. In comparison to my pair of Phonaks, there are several devices created by God that we can use to better hear and understand Him. The first, of course, is the Bible. If we were to follow the advice of the Psalmist who wrote some sound advice starting especially in Psalms 119:97, and mediate on God’s Word daily, the vibrations He sends our way are better received. By spending time talking to God (in silent or not-silent prayer) is another way He can communicate to our heads and hearts. Not that you might physically ‘hear’ a voice (many claim to have, I never have), but you might get messages from Him through the Holy Spirit living within you anyway. He, the HS, has ways of making you understand things using your emotions, your conscience and your heart. Next, get with others who follow Christ. You will be able to actually HEAR them as they go about the arduous yet necessary task of administering a form of discipline as described by the Hebrew writer in chapter 12. We often use the term ‘discipler’ to describe these human voices of God.
God has many methods of getting our attention. He can whisper (Job 4:12); He can speak (Hebrews 1:1); He can even YELL through the use of Angels (Revelation 18:2). All we have to do is stop and listen. "Be still" says God as recorded by David, "and know that I am God." What we probably don’t want (but sometimes need), is for God to yell "KABOOM" into our ears. If we listen when He whispers and speaks, maybe our spiritual hearing will not become as dull as my physical ability to interpret sounds. Are you listening to Him in reading the Bible, praying and sharing your lives with others?
I had many valleys this year, and spent some time in them. Hence, I hope my hearing improves in 2012. How about you?