(Saturday)
Vocal. I’ve never known anyone so vocal. She talks constantly and never takes a breath. I never know what all the words mean, and I’ve gotten so I don’t really listen and try to understand. Maybe if there were fewer words, maybe then I could figure out what she wants.
Sometimes I think she just likes the sound of her own voice. Surely no one really has that many needs – all day, every single day. Hers is the first voice I hear in the morning and the last one I hear at night. Sometimes she even wakes me up in the night with her incessant chatter. Can’t she wait until the sun wakes up to share those thoughts with me? I think she’s afraid she might forget if she doesn’t tell me right this minute.
She is perfectly capable of taking care of some things by herself, and I really don’t need to hear about it. There’s plenty of food in the kitchen. If you are hungry, go get food. I don’t need to know. The same applies with drinking. I know I encourage her to drink because I want her kidneys to be healthy, but I don’t think it requires conversation every time she feels the need for water. If you are thirsty, go to the kitchen and get a drink.
I think the worst part is when she wants me to be fully aware of her personal hygiene habits. I certainly don’t have a need for her to inform me each time she heads off to the bathroom, and I don’t want her talking to me through the door when I head in that direction. Yet, that has become the pattern of our days.
Chatting through closed doors is not held to bathroom barriers only. No, any closed door immediately becomes a target for conversation. Her voice is muffled through the wood, but I know she’s out there talking to me and wanting something – usually something insignificant. My biggest challenge is that I have no idea what she really wants or how to fulfill her needs, and she has no idea how to communicate so that I can understand. The end result is sometimes a deeply felt grumpiness in both of us. There has to be a better way to enjoy life together… if only she weren’t so vocal.
Moses and Aaron shared something similar when they were faced with grumpy, vocal Israelites. We’re hungry, we’re thirsty. What are you going to do for us? Let us tell you about our troubles. Chatter, chatter, chatter. No barriers slowed down the constant need to be vocal; and when those vocal, thirsty demands began to come, the two men turned to God for direction.
Earlier in the journey while leading the Hebrews, God had instructed Moses to strike a rock with his staff which would provide the people with water. As Moses and Aaron again chat with God about the people’s thirst, God is prepared to deliver water – this time without the visual aid. God only requires Moses to speak – just say the word. Moses, however, has other ideas and reverts back to what he knows. He strikes the rock with his staff again. The Israelites get the water, but God is not happy. God’s voice is never muffled nor insignificant. God communicates clearly, but neither Moses nor Aaron follow the directions. As a result, neither leader is allowed to enter into the promised land and enjoy the life there together with God’s people.
This Lenten season is filled with opportunities to speak more than hear, but I pray we will find the time for some quiet listening to God’s voice. When I listen intentionally, I find that God’s simple message sometimes involves few words – words that are easy to understand. The result is a straightforward path to promised lands.
I think I’ll go sit with my very chatty cat for a minute. She’s been meowing for quite some time and seems to need some attention. So vocal. (Did you think I was talking about someone else?)
Listening,
Pastor Beth
PRAYER FROM JOHN 3
Why do we settle, O God, for only being born once, or even twice, as if the world never changes, as if everything is just fine the way it is and we have no need for new life, new encounters with you, new promptings of your Spirit, and new awakenings in our souls? Why do we turn your invitation into a mark of our own achievement, as if your life is anything other than an extravagant gift, as if the glimpses of your reign that we receive are earned, or deserved, or make us somehow ‘better’ than others? We praise you for the shocking miraculous truth, God, that we can always be - that we need to always be born again; that daily you welcome us into a surprising new life, the wonderful, creative, unpredictable world of your Spirit; and that all we can do is allow ourselves to be pushed - birthed, by your grace, into new experiences of your reign. Here we are, O God; Let us be, once more, in this moment, in this place, born yet again. Amen.
re-worship.blogspot.com
KEY VERSES FROM TODAY’S SCRIPTURE READINGS
Psalm 107 – Some were sick through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities endured affliction…
Numbers 20 – “Let Aaron be gathered to his people. For he shall not enter the land that I have given to the Israelites, because you rebelled against my command…”
John 3 – Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
For today’s full scripture readings, click here… https://www.divinestreet.org/lent-scripture.html
Vocal. I’ve never known anyone so vocal. She talks constantly and never takes a breath. I never know what all the words mean, and I’ve gotten so I don’t really listen and try to understand. Maybe if there were fewer words, maybe then I could figure out what she wants.
Sometimes I think she just likes the sound of her own voice. Surely no one really has that many needs – all day, every single day. Hers is the first voice I hear in the morning and the last one I hear at night. Sometimes she even wakes me up in the night with her incessant chatter. Can’t she wait until the sun wakes up to share those thoughts with me? I think she’s afraid she might forget if she doesn’t tell me right this minute.
She is perfectly capable of taking care of some things by herself, and I really don’t need to hear about it. There’s plenty of food in the kitchen. If you are hungry, go get food. I don’t need to know. The same applies with drinking. I know I encourage her to drink because I want her kidneys to be healthy, but I don’t think it requires conversation every time she feels the need for water. If you are thirsty, go to the kitchen and get a drink.
I think the worst part is when she wants me to be fully aware of her personal hygiene habits. I certainly don’t have a need for her to inform me each time she heads off to the bathroom, and I don’t want her talking to me through the door when I head in that direction. Yet, that has become the pattern of our days.
Chatting through closed doors is not held to bathroom barriers only. No, any closed door immediately becomes a target for conversation. Her voice is muffled through the wood, but I know she’s out there talking to me and wanting something – usually something insignificant. My biggest challenge is that I have no idea what she really wants or how to fulfill her needs, and she has no idea how to communicate so that I can understand. The end result is sometimes a deeply felt grumpiness in both of us. There has to be a better way to enjoy life together… if only she weren’t so vocal.
Moses and Aaron shared something similar when they were faced with grumpy, vocal Israelites. We’re hungry, we’re thirsty. What are you going to do for us? Let us tell you about our troubles. Chatter, chatter, chatter. No barriers slowed down the constant need to be vocal; and when those vocal, thirsty demands began to come, the two men turned to God for direction.
Earlier in the journey while leading the Hebrews, God had instructed Moses to strike a rock with his staff which would provide the people with water. As Moses and Aaron again chat with God about the people’s thirst, God is prepared to deliver water – this time without the visual aid. God only requires Moses to speak – just say the word. Moses, however, has other ideas and reverts back to what he knows. He strikes the rock with his staff again. The Israelites get the water, but God is not happy. God’s voice is never muffled nor insignificant. God communicates clearly, but neither Moses nor Aaron follow the directions. As a result, neither leader is allowed to enter into the promised land and enjoy the life there together with God’s people.
This Lenten season is filled with opportunities to speak more than hear, but I pray we will find the time for some quiet listening to God’s voice. When I listen intentionally, I find that God’s simple message sometimes involves few words – words that are easy to understand. The result is a straightforward path to promised lands.
I think I’ll go sit with my very chatty cat for a minute. She’s been meowing for quite some time and seems to need some attention. So vocal. (Did you think I was talking about someone else?)
Listening,
Pastor Beth
PRAYER FROM JOHN 3
Why do we settle, O God, for only being born once, or even twice, as if the world never changes, as if everything is just fine the way it is and we have no need for new life, new encounters with you, new promptings of your Spirit, and new awakenings in our souls? Why do we turn your invitation into a mark of our own achievement, as if your life is anything other than an extravagant gift, as if the glimpses of your reign that we receive are earned, or deserved, or make us somehow ‘better’ than others? We praise you for the shocking miraculous truth, God, that we can always be - that we need to always be born again; that daily you welcome us into a surprising new life, the wonderful, creative, unpredictable world of your Spirit; and that all we can do is allow ourselves to be pushed - birthed, by your grace, into new experiences of your reign. Here we are, O God; Let us be, once more, in this moment, in this place, born yet again. Amen.
re-worship.blogspot.com
KEY VERSES FROM TODAY’S SCRIPTURE READINGS
Psalm 107 – Some were sick through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities endured affliction…
Numbers 20 – “Let Aaron be gathered to his people. For he shall not enter the land that I have given to the Israelites, because you rebelled against my command…”
John 3 – Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
For today’s full scripture readings, click here… https://www.divinestreet.org/lent-scripture.html