John 12:20-38
Have you ever longed for the voice of God to speak to you as it does to Jesus in this story? I have. There have been moments in my life when I felt God spoke to me clearly; in a dorm room while praying in college, before I received the phone call about moving to Grapevine, on my first trip to Kenya. The first time was a sense of encouragement about the direction of my life. The later two times changed the direction of my life. I was with others each time it happened, it was only while praying in the dorm room that anyone else sensed God speaking.
There have been many other times in my life where I felt direction from God. The general ways have been through scripture and the wisdom/ teaching of others. I have come to realize over the years that the hearing of God's voice is the exceptional moment in life, not the general practice. I long for those exceptional moments but want to be careful that my longings don't cause me to miss the way God has usually acted.
On a side note, I received very good news this morning. When we returned from the Kenya trip this summer, I reported that we had discovered that some of the funds we had sent for the Lanyiru Church had never been received by the church. Most of our funds are sent through the Meru Synod office and Bishop William. The funds to the Lanyiru Church had to be sent through a different Bishop. After a number of emails to various leaders, part of the money was found in August. The rest of the money was located yesterday and will be forwarded to the church next week. This is very good news!
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There has only been one moment in my life (thus far) that I have clearly heard God speaking to me. It happened this summer, in church, during a sermon that incorporated pictures from the recent trip to Africa. Many of them were of the children, and that is when I heard God calling and directing me.
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Since then, I have been waiting for another moment like that. Sometimes, I try to make them happen-which never works. Since hearing Him, and waiting anxiously, I have been able to see some of the ways He is working a little more clearly. I can see how He is answering past prayers, or providing the guidance I asked for. I think these are some of the things I would have overlooked before-or not recognized as God's doings.
The voice of God is an amazing thing, it is something that I could literally feel within me-a change maybe? The emotions that came after were unexplainable. I was scared and panicked, yet sensed peace as well. It was very strange.
I'm glad to hear the money got to the Lanyiru Church. God does answer prayers!