Feb
28
Listen to the VOICE
February 28, 2008 |
We all hear THE VOICE. It’s that little voice inside of us that each and every day tells us what we should do - what is right, what is wrong, what is the truth. It’s the voice spoken through our spouse, our children, our pastor, our friend. It’s the voice that guides us through our day - if we listen to it.
Today’s first reading has Jeremiah listening to God, who is telling him to tell the Israelites to “[l]isten to my voice.” The responsorial song has us proclaiming from Psalm 95 “oh, that today you would hear his voice.”
It’s THE VOICE - the voice of God. And it’s telling us what God expects of us in matters great and small. It’s telling us the path we should take. It is telling us what is truth.
I have a hard time listening to this voice. I’m a Type A who can be hyperactive. I simply have a hard time sitting still or being silent - not with my wife, not with my kids, not with God. But it’s in the silence of inactivity that leads us to the place in our inner soul where we can truly listen to God and those he has placed in our lives. It’s the place where we can grow closer, take instruction and have our soul fortified for the road ahead.
Occasionally, I can settle myself down enough to sit in silence and let my prayer intertwine with where God wants to lead my thoughts. And I do find that I am more focused, peaceful and resolute. I find that I am more prepared to do his will for me. And I am able to better truly focus on my wife and kids and their needs - and this focus makes them and me much happier and more fulfilled people.
And maybe that’s the challenge for our society. We are so fast-paced with so many distractions and demands on our time. We simply forget to listen - to each other, to our spouses, to our children, to our Father. We go through life at a breakneck pace and forget to listen and embrace the silent inactivity - to appreciate those times when God chooses to slow us down so he can speak with his us as his children.
Let us not be afraid to truly listen and hear the voice inside of us. Let us slow down enough for God to catch up with us so he can have a word with us. Today, let us hear his voice.
