Tuesday, May 22, 2018

when God speaks


Today in the One Year Bible, we read from John 12:20-50. Jesus is teaching many things, and at one point God the Father replies to Him. He says that He has glorified His name, and He will glorify it again.

This teaches us several things. Because there were many people present when God spoke. But some said it was just thunder. Some said it was an angel. And some said it was God. What God said is mysterious. What does He mean? What does that signify? It doesn't seem like something a human would say. If you say, "Your name be glorified" to a human, think how strange it would be if they said, "I have glorified my name before, and I will do it again."

So what do we learn here? Well, first we learn that God speaks to us, but we have to be listening to hear it. If we aren't ready to listen, we might just think it's thunder. Our hearts have to be prepared to hear His voice. He speaks to us every day, all throughout our lives. If we open our hearts to Him, we will hear His voice.

But when we DO hear Him, it might be so deep, and so full of the mystery of eternity, that we won't know what to do with it. And in some cases, there isn't anything TO do with it. We just meditate on the mystery. We drink in the depths of what He says to us, and allow it to make us bigger. Some mysteries can't be reduced to logic or usefulness. They just ARE. When we allow our minds to turn these truths over and think about them for a long time, we begin to see that they have a beauty like the sky, or like the sea. Not a use, but a beauty and truth of themselves, to be pondered.

So the take home today is to listen for His voice, and when He speaks to you, mull it over. Consider His words carefully. Allow them to sink into your mind, and transform you.

And don't always expect them to make logical sense or be useful. Sometimes His words, like His works, just are.

Thank You God for speaking to us. Help us hear You.