This week we’ve been following an order of worship as outlined in the church’s bulletin where I am serving. The Church Gathers, The Church Confesses, now we are to The Church Hears. . .
As a 13 year veteran in youth ministry, I remember being told early on in my ministry, that what most anyone wants in this world, is to be “heard”, not via auditory means but with your brain and heart, “understood”. We want to know that someone is listening with their soul and trying to understand our words, our feelings. This same desire, I believe, is one of God’s for us. God wants us to hear and understand His message. We can speak of hearing God’s voice in the wind or through the birds of the air but how do we understand God?
Please join me in this prayer:
God of banging pots and whispering, shy teenagers, how can we hear You?
You speak to us continuously in laughter, through tears but do we understand Your words? Your meaning?
Help us to open our minds to You, to set aside our agendas and listen for what You are leading us to do.
In new love relationships, we set all things aside to make sure our love knows we are paying attention to their every word, every nuance. Help us to give You that form of undivided devotion.
What does it mean to hear You? What will that call us to see? to feel? to do?
Almighty God our ears are filled with the noises of our day to day, please fill our hearts with Your words, Your message.
Give us hearts that hear one another.
Hearts that hear You.
All God’s people say. . .
