February 7, 2014 - "The Benefits of Listening Well"

Just a reminder that Healthy4You! Life Group meets this Sunday and it is our Valentine gathering. I am making a NSA red velvet cake with a cream cheese icing and crab cakes. My mom always told me to never try something new on guests - only family. WELL...I have made these once, they are a work in progress, and you are family. (PS - they are low fat and not fried, but taste pretty yummy for just a few calories) So I make no declaration, but I need to keep tweaking them for my next set of recipes. Listen to that - YIKES. I better get one devotional cookbook published first. Yes? This Sunday evening we will weigh in (those who want to), share our meal and recipes, and I will be sharing Freedom Connection #2 - JOY in the Journey. Please connect with me if you're coming so I can prepare adequately. See you at 6. We've been talking this week about how God communicates: through His billboard in the sky, His Word, His church, His Son. When Adam and Eve broke fellowship with the Father, He began a journey of seeking to touch His creation (including us) daily with whatever means necessary to communicate His eternal affection. God concludes His Word with the book of Revelation and in there we find an admonishment from John the Revelator, "to him who has ears to hear, let him hear by the Spirit of the Lord." We find this to be the consistent directive to the seven churches mentioned in chapters 2 and 3 of that book. Now certainly John knew they had natural ears and that is not what he was questioning. As I have examined this passage for the past couple of days, I have asked myself the question, "do I have ears to hear by the Spirit of the Lord?" You see I totally believe that God speaks is so many unique and wonderful ways and often in our busyness, we miss His voice. I absolutely believe that God's desire is to be the voice we hear first and last each day. I wonder if I am listening? Are you? God spoke and the earth was created. I wonder what He spoke and created in my life yesterday? Yours? What will He speak and create today? I don't want to take a sunset or sunrise for granted, or the power of a storm, or the words in red in the New Testament. My heart's desire is to know Father God in such an intimate way that His still, small voice speaks loudly to me. There are often many voices that cry out to us in a 24 hour period, but the Bible clearly teaches in John 10: 27-28 "27"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;28and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.…" Praise God we can hear His voice, He knows us, and we are following him. Right? Be encouraged this day that God is speaking because He knows us and plans to reward us with eternal life. YES! See you Sunday night, PK