God Speaks,We Listen

My son has selective hearing.

Strangely enough, if I say, “It’s bedtime. Let’s put away the toys,” he suddenly can’t hear a thing. A typical bedtime routine plays out like this. Either my husband or I (sometimes both of us when Ethan is in rare form) nicely announces bedtime. My son continues to play. One of us tells Ethan a second time to put his toys away and head to the bathroom to brush his teeth. Again nothing.

My voice raises, my temperature goes up, and the next bedtime announcement is accompanied by a well-placed threat of time-out or lost play privileges the next day. Suddenly, Ethan’s hearing perks up, and he heads to the bathroom.

Why am I telling you about my son’s “inability” to hear? Because, as much as I hate to admit it, Ethan's a lot like me.

God speaks to me through His Word, and if I don't like the message, I keep going my own way until my disobedience gets me into trouble.

I have a feeling I may not be alone in dealing with selective hearing when it comes to listening to the Father.

God’s Word informs our lives, teaches us about Him and His ways, and functions as our weapon against the enemy’s attack. The Word is powerful, and through it, we learn the attributes the Father would have us possess. For this reason, the Psalmist wrote, "How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Your word. Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You” (Psalm 119:9, 11).

With God’s Word, we grow into spiritual maturity. Hebrews 4:12 tells us, "For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart."

His word is the spiritual food that gives us strength. "This is my comfort in my affliction, that Your word has revived me," the Psalmist wrote (Psalm 119:50). And Peter tells us to "as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word that [we] may grow thereby" (I Peter 2:2).

So if all of this is true, why do I struggle at times to "hear" God and do what He tells me to do? Probably because, like Ethan, I convince myself that my agenda is more important than God's. The reality is, though, that as much as my husband and I expect Ethan to listen to and obey us, even when he doesn't agree with what we're requiring him to do, God expects believers to listen as He speaks through His word.

Not knowing (and then obeying) the Word of God makes us weak at best. But when we seek to obey God in everything, we’ll develop an intimate relationship with Him, an intimacy that makes it possible for us to live the abundant life God has called us to in Christ.

--Cheryl