Have you ever tried to have a conversation with someone
where you felt as though there was something wrong with the communication lines?  “Can you hear me now?”  “How about now, Can you here me now?”  Do any of you remember those commercials?  How about Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist when little Oliver asks “Please, sir, I want some more.”  “More, you want more…”  Somehow those lines of communication, while loud, were not quite understood.  Have any of you ever played the game telephone?  It’s the game where everyone sits in a circle and one person begins the game by whispering a secret in the ear of the person to their left.  Then that person does the same whispering into the ear of the person to their left, but this time repeating that secret which they just heard.  The game continues until the original person receives his/her message back from the person to their right.  It is not common, in this game, to actually receive the same secret that you started.  I think you can get the idea of how listening is key to hearing and understanding.  But what happens when you are not even capable of receiving what God is saying?

Often times we wait upon the Lord to speak.  Patiently we wait.  Patiently we wait.  Patiently, alright already enough with the patience.  We just want God to speak to us when we want Him to.  Unfortunately, what if God is waiting to speak to us when we are in the right position to receive what He has to say?  What if we are not prepared to hear the message.  What if, in our own selfishness, we wait for the Lord to speak to us when He has already spoken about the issue, but we haven’t yet put aside our sinful desires long enough to focus upon His truths?  In preparing for a Bible Study that we will be offering at our church in the coming months, I was able to preview a few sessions from Priscilla Shirer.  She states, most of the time the Communicator is not the problem.  It’s the receiver that is the problem.  

She couldn’t be more correct.  How many times in Scriptures, especially the Psalms, do we read that “the ears are open but they did not hear” or “their eyes were open but they did not see?”   Too many times in Scripture we see where people saw and heard the things of God but they did not understand.  Or was it, sometimes, they simply didn’t choose to hear or obey what they heard or saw?  Mrs. Shirer is 100% correct, the problem is the receiver not the communicator.  Also, the problem isn’t the means of communication or the delivery.  God has given His word to everyone.  It is not limited to white or black, free or enslaved, rich or poor, healthy or sick.  It is given to all who would read, listen, and obey.  So, the next time you are “patiently” or “frantically” waiting upon a word from the Lord, check yourself.  Make sure you are in a position to receive His truths.  Then be ready to act.  Once you hear God’s Word it demands action.  When we hear God’s Word we should immediately obey, but that is for another blog on another day.  Until then, stay strong in the Lord and be of good courage!

Peace & Blessings,
Pastor Isaac