Pray. Listen. Act
Tuesday 2nd October 2018
'Look carefully and listen closely and pay attention to everything I am going to show you.' Ezekiel 40:4 NIV
When we're praying, we can be so busy telling God all the things we want him to do, that we forget to take time to listen to him. If we stop to listen to what he has to say, he can use us in great ways. Many of the Old Testament books are written by prophets. From Isaiah to Jeremiah, Hosea to Ezekiel, they listened to what God had to say. On one occasion, God came to Ezekiel in the form of a man who said: 'Look carefully and listen closely and pay attention to everything I am going to show you, for that is why you have been brought here' (Ezekiel 40:4 NIV).
We may feel that we don't hear from God, or doubt that he would speak to us like he did to Ezekiel. But that's not true. We may not hear an audible voice like Samuel: 'The Lord came and stood there, calling..."Samuel! Samuel"' (1 Samuel 3:10 NIV)! But God does speak to all of us. We need to learn to listen to him: it's hard to listen if we're doing all the talking.
But listening is just the beginning. Ezekiel was told to 'tell the people of Israel everything' he saw. Once we've heard what God wants to say, we need to act. Whether it's something we need to change in our lives, something we need to start believing or something to share with others, let's be obedient.
So what now? Make it a priority to spend time with God. Practise listening to him. Then act on what you hear.
Tuesday 2nd October 2018
'Look carefully and listen closely and pay attention to everything I am going to show you.' Ezekiel 40:4 NIV
When we're praying, we can be so busy telling God all the things we want him to do, that we forget to take time to listen to him. If we stop to listen to what he has to say, he can use us in great ways. Many of the Old Testament books are written by prophets. From Isaiah to Jeremiah, Hosea to Ezekiel, they listened to what God had to say. On one occasion, God came to Ezekiel in the form of a man who said: 'Look carefully and listen closely and pay attention to everything I am going to show you, for that is why you have been brought here' (Ezekiel 40:4 NIV).
We may feel that we don't hear from God, or doubt that he would speak to us like he did to Ezekiel. But that's not true. We may not hear an audible voice like Samuel: 'The Lord came and stood there, calling..."Samuel! Samuel"' (1 Samuel 3:10 NIV)! But God does speak to all of us. We need to learn to listen to him: it's hard to listen if we're doing all the talking.
But listening is just the beginning. Ezekiel was told to 'tell the people of Israel everything' he saw. Once we've heard what God wants to say, we need to act. Whether it's something we need to change in our lives, something we need to start believing or something to share with others, let's be obedient.
So what now? Make it a priority to spend time with God. Practise listening to him. Then act on what you hear.
