How is Your Heart?

~~~ Jeremiah 7:23-28 ~~~ Psalm 95 ~~~ Luke 11:14-23 ~~~

We often act as if we d'not understand the message of scripture,
but the truth is we have permanently implanted ear plugs.
We have spiritual ear plugs that block us from
hearing the Words that are spoken to us.

These ear plugs are so efficient that they
are capable of even deafening our hearts.

If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

How can we possibly hear his voice unless
we remove the ear plugs?
But first we must admit that our ear plugs exist.

It is critical that we remove the ear plugs.
If you clear your ears in order to hear more clearly
then you may just discover how much Jesus has done for you.

Why would you turn your back
 to the one who has done so much for you?
How could you walk away;
unless you have deafened yourself?

This is the nation that does not listen
to the voice of the LORD, its God,
or take correction.
Faithfulness has disappeared;
the word itself is banished from their speech.

These are harsh words...
God says we don't take correction, not even from him.

He accuses us of no longer being faithful.

But the crushing blow comes when we are convicted
of banishing his word from our speech.

Today I invite you to turn to scripture
 for every situation in your life.

We have a God who comes down to dwell with us.
A God who remains with us even when
we turn and walk the other way.
We have a God who wants us to listen for his voice.
A God who wants us to let his words soften our hearts.

A soft heart is pliable...a soft heart is more apt
 to have a greater capacity to love.

A hard heart is not capable of being anything more.
A hard heart is frozen in time forever.
A hard heart is as cold as stone.
A hard heart can have no mercy or compassion.

So the question for us is;
what kind of heart do you want to have?

Whoever is not with me is against me,
and whoever does not gather with me scatters.

Can you do this if you remain deaf with a hard heart?
I am guessing the answer must be 'no'.

Blessings come in hearing with a softened heart.

~~~Peace~~~

Turn Around

~~~ Jeremiah 7:23-28 ~~~ Psalm 95 ~~~ Luke 11:14-23 ~~~

They walked in the hardness of their evil hearts
and turned their backs, not their faces, to me.

The prophet Jeremiah paints a very grim picture
of those who have turned away from God...
away from the light.
It is the very hardness of their hearts
that gives them reason to turn from God's presence.

Our body language speaks volumes about how we are feeling
 and what we may be thinking.
As sinners we do not just casually turn our face from God
we turn our entire body the opposite direction.
Turning your body away from someone
 is a sign you wish to ignore them completely.
Little children use this posture all the time.

While we can physically turn away we can also turn away
through our emotions and our hearts.
Turning away, however, does render the person deaf.
We can hear voices coming from behind us.

If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Sin plunges us into darkness deprived of the light of God's face,
but it does not close our ears.

What is causing you to turn your back on God?

Sometimes we turn our backs on issues out of fear
or in order to give ourselves a false sense of protection.

It is like burying your head in the sand...
We are ignoring our own participation in sin.
Jesus did not come down to Earth because
everyone else was committing sins;
he came because I was sinning and because
you were sinning.

Our language is filled with idioms,
but when it comes to our relationship with God
we must be open and honest.

We do not have time to remain hard hearted.
We do not have time to turn our backs on the Lord.
We do not have time to be stiff-necked and rigid.

We must relax ourselves into the hands
of God so that he can transform us.
God has great plans for you.
Will you cooperate with him?

If today you hear his voice, do not turn away.
If today you hear his voice run toward him.
!!!Turn around!!!
He is there to embrace you.

We are so Blessed there is no reason
to turn our backs on God.

Peace.

The Rock of Life

 

~~~ Numbers 20:1-13 ~~~ Psalm 95 ~~~ Matthew 16:13-23 ~~~

 

Rocks and obstacles connect the readings together today.

Moses is now facing the issue of no water.

Water is vital for all life.

The people were justified in complaining for lack of water.

Moses is in mourning over the death of his sister Miriam.

It was Miriam who saved his life.

Over the years she must have brought him great joy.

 

Moses and Aaron once again come before the Lord; asking for his help.

God never fails us; he instructs Moses to strike the rock

with his staff ordering it to produce water.

 

Moses is used to following the instructions of God,

but this time he misses the mark.

This time he fails to give God proper credit.

Water does gush forth from the rock as God promised,

in spite of his not saying it had come from God.

 

These are the waters of Meribah,

where the children of Israel contended against the LORD,
and where the LORD revealed his sanctity among them.

 

 

Psalm 95 makes reference to this day

when the people failed to praise God for his gift of water.

Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
“Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as in the day of Massah in the desert...

 

The hearts of the people had taken on the characteristics of the rock. 

Later Jesus uses the analogy of the rock to establish

the foundation of his church.

 

Jesus confirms that his disciples are secure

within their own hearts as to his identity.

We too must have that same interior security.

We cannot shy away from answering the very same question

 posed to the disciples that day.

"...who do you say that I am?"

 

You are the only one who can answer that question.

 

Peter answers this same question with such conviction

 that Jesus considers him to be a rock.

This was a complement, Jesus was confident in Peter's belief.

 

Soon after this Peter, witnessing all that Jesus was doing,

 cannot imagine him suffering. 

 “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.”

 

 At that moment Peter becomes an obstacle for Jesus.

Jesus needs Peter to understand that his dying on the cross is required.

 

“Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”

 Moses had many obstacles to overcome as he

led the people across the desert.

Today we see one closest to Jesus, Peter, becoming an obstacle.

Peter had good intentions. He loved Jesus and did not want to see him suffer.

 

Sometimes things that appear to be good

may actually be obstacles in our life.

How can we think as God wants us to think

when we are so accustomed to thinking as humans do? 

 

 We can only come before the Lord praising him

for all that he has done for us,

asking him for constant guidance.

 

 Blessings in facing your obstacles with conviction.

Lord, prevent me from ever being an obstacle for someone else.

Selective Hearing: Do You Hear His Voice?

~~~ Jeremiah 7: 23-28 ~~~ Psalm 95 ~~~ Luke 11: 14-23 ~~~

"If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts."

"Listen to my voice...
walk in all the ways that I command you...
listen to the voice of the Lord..."

"Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters."
(Luke 11:23)
If you are constantly doing all of the talking you cannot be listening. You may be able to hear if you are talking, but you are not listening. Hearing and listening are not the same, the former requires your attention. 
The same letters are used to spell listen and silent.
Did you ever notice that before?

I find the story of young Samuel disturbing, because he heard the voice but was not able to recognize it as that of God. What if you hear but are confused by what you hear? How do you determine the voice of God?

"Listen, my children." (cf. Proverbs 7:24)

Have you ever gotten a phone call and as soon as you heard the voice you knew it was your friend or someone else you know well? Each person's voice has unique qualities. Your voice is like your speech print.

I believe there was something most unique about the quality of the voice of Jesus. I believe that when you heard his voice you would leave your nets and walk away from your monotonous life. Jesus walked along the seaside and said, 'Come, follow me' and men did just that.

Sheep learn to recognize their owners voice and will come when called. What happens if you hear the voice, know it is God, and do not respond? God will not wrestle with you, he will wait until you can hear his voice. When the time is right you will be able to really listen. It is only when you can listen that you can respond accordingly. Spending time in silence creates an environment
more conducive to being able to listen.

The words of God cannot take root in a hardened heart. If you have decided you are not going to listen for God, because it is a waste of your time most likely
you will be right....you will not hear him.

I do wish I could have heard his voice. I wonder what it sounded like? Was it a strong commanding voice? Or was it a loving kind voice?
You tell a lot about a person by just listening to how they speak to others.

 It is interesting that in the gospel Jesus is curing a mute...
this man was not able to speak until the demon was cast out of him.
Jesus uses his voice to restore the man's voice.

The words we speak effect the people who are listening to us. Once words have passed your lips you cannot recall them to return to you.

Sit in silence this week and listen for the voice of the Lord.
Make yourself available to recognize his holy voice; then you will walk 'with him'.
Activate your selective hearing...you know what I mean, think about it for a moment.
I long to hear the sound of your voice, Lord.