Lean in a Little Closer
This story has been passed around, so I do not know who to attribute it to. Maybe you’ve even heard it or read it.
It’s about a young man and an old preacher. A young man lost his job and didn’t know which way to turn. So he went to see the old preacher.
Pacing about the preacher’s study, the young man ranted about his problem. Finally, he clenched his fist and shouted, “I’ve begged God to say something to help me, preacher, why doesn’t God answer?”
The old preacher, who sat across the room, spoke something in reply, something so hushed it was indistinguishable.
The young man stepped across the room. “What did you say?” he asked.
The preacher repeated himself, but again in a tone as soft as a whisper. So the young man moved closer until he was leaning on the preacher’s chair.
“Sorry,” he said. “I still didn’t hear you.”
With their heads bent together, the old preacher murmured once more, “God sometimes whispers, so we will move closer to hear Him.”
This time the young man heard and understood.
*******
Pummeled and raw spirits ache to hear whispers of love from the Lord.
If you are one, tilt your head in His direction. Cup your hand to your ear. Lean in a little closer, for the closer a soul draws near to God, the more accessible His whispers become.
Tell your Beloved, “Speak, Lord, Your servant listens.” (1 Sam. 3:9b NLT) Then, listen for that soft, compassionate voice. The one known as the Still Small Voice. Spoken through the Spirit of Christ and received by a heart of faith.
Though the Word says the voice of the Lord thunders, is powerful, is full of majesty, divides the flames of fire, and shakes the wilderness (Ps. 29), God does not usually use His outside voice to shout at His children.
So soft He speaks that His inside voice is often overlooked or ignored. Practice listening and being guided and you will learn not to miss it. Pray and ask the Father to help you learn how to recognize His voice, for not every voice belongs to Him. And soon, you will understand what Jesus said, “My sheep recognize my voice.” (John 10:27 TLB)
God spoke through Isaiah, saying, “Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live.” (Is. 55:3 NKJV) Incline means to stretch out toward, to extend, or to bend. Hear means to listen to, to hear intelligently (often with the implication of attention and obedience). Live also means to revive, be quickened, or be restored.
If your arid soul is suffering and in need of refreshing, restoration, or revival, then, incline your ear. Hear, with the intention of obeying, “Be still and know that I am God.” (Ps. 46:10 NKJV) For a soul to drink in those soothing, Living Waters of grace, mercy, encouragement, guidance, and forgiveness from the Still Small Voice, being still is essential to being filled.
Shut out the roar of the world, the tug of the schedule, the pull of the to-do list, the voices of temptation. It all must be silenced. Be still means dropping your hands from your work. Withdrawing to be alone, to be quiet.
Immanuel longs to fellowship with you. Don’t busyness Him away. Those deep, intimate words of fellowship from your Beloved you so long to hear are found mainly in your quiet time. Straight from His heart to yours.
You have a constant connection with the Living God of Eternity. His whispers of love await you. Listen to Him. You are one whisper away from all you need to hear.
Lean in a little closer. He’s whispering to you…
“Come unto Me…and I will give you rest.”
(Matt. 11:28 KJV)
May you always be leaning in the right direction...Lynn
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