Dear Ones,
Hope you are having a good day. This morning I did food prep, made egg dishes etc. and went to Aldi’s and to my exercise class. I’m going to creative crafts now and Bible study tonight. Ann may stop by this afternoon on her way back from the cities.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Our lives are so blessed and full when we walk through life with the Lord and in the light of His presence. Today as I was having devotions, it seems like all the passages I turned to had to do with listening to His voice and following in obedience. Our need is to have open ears to listen if we are to know what His will is before we can obey. But sometimes we don’t really want to hear as we think the Lord will ask something too hard of us or we simply want our own way. We are warned not to turn a deaf ear but to listen. In Heb. 3:7-8a & 12 (NRSV) it says, “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, ‘Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion…Take care, brothers and sisters, that none of you may have an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.” God wants our obedience and not hardened hearts.
 I read that Henry Nouwen felt that “the noise of our lives made us deaf, and unable to hear when we are called, or from which direction.” He felt our spiritual life was a pilgrimage from deafness to listening. Sometimes in our busyness we simply don’t dial down to be quiet enough to hear His voice and to know what the Lord asks of us.  We also need to ask ourselves, do we really want to know what He is saying or do we turn a deaf ear because we are so busy doing our own thing and want our own way. I think we all struggle even as we pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Maybe we think what God is asking of us is impossible but we must remember we have God’s power and it is not dependent on us. Mary was asked an impossible thing when the angel appeared to her and yet she didn’t question but simply said, “Be it according to your will!” We can trust God and He will give us what we need at the time we need to accomplish His will. Let us not listen to the negative talk the enemy sends but open our hearts and claim God’s promises. He will take care of the rest.
Challenge for today: Pray for hearing ears and an open heart that is willing to go God’s way.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy