Listening for God’s Voice

After the fire came a gentle whisper. 1 Kings 19, verse 12. Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Our reading, titled, Listening for God's Voice, was written by Brent Hackett and read by Stephen Tabor.

1 Kings 19, verses 8 through 14. So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled 40 days and 40 nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.

There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the Lord came to him, What are you doing here, Elijah? He replied, I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword.

I am the only one left and now they are trying to kill me too. The Lord said, Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by. Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord. But the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, What are you doing here, Elijah? He replied, I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword.

I am the only one left and now they are trying to kill me too. Listening for God's Voice, written by Brent Hackett. In the early 20th century, New York City had become a noisy place. With an overhead train, cars, trolleys, newsboys yelling, and people rushing around, life was loud. Yet one day at Broadway and 34th Street, a man named Charles Kellogg declared to his friend, Listen, I hear a cricket. Impossible, his friend answered. With all this racket, you couldn't hear a tiny sound like that. Yet Mr. Kellogg insisted and eventually found the cricket chirping in the window of a bakery. What astonishing hearing you have, his friend proclaimed. Not at all, Mr. Kellogg replied.

It's a matter of where you focus your attention. Elijah was a prophet of God who had just seen him perform an amazing display of his power. But now the prophet was hiding in a cave for fear of the pagan queen. This time, however, God didn't want to communicate in a powerful way. Even though he had sent a great wind, an earthquake, and even a roaring fire, it was time now for Elijah to commune with God personally and quietly. God wanted to speak to the prophet in a gentle whisper. Today, there's a surplus of noise in our lives, yet God still speaks in a quiet voice through the Scriptures and by His Spirit. Taking time to prayerfully focus our attention on God will help us tune in to His comforting, guiding voice. Let's pray together. Heavenly Father, in the midst of the noise and chaos around us, help us to quiet our hearts and listen for Your gentle whisper. Teach us to seek You in stillness, trusting that Your Spirit will guide and comfort us as we draw near to You. Thank You, Lord. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. As you go about your day, reflect on these questions. What noises are crowding in on your life? How can you listen for God's voice in your busy world?