Spend Time with Me

For any relationship to work, thrive and grow there needs to be

time together. Time for two people to share their thoughts and

desires, get advice and to just listen.

Imagine someone in your life you’re close too. Maybe it’s your

spouse, relative or a friend. Now, imagine if they were constantly

coming to you and telling you all their problems and yet they

wouldn’t be quiet long enough for you to respond. Imagine them

being in your presence talking, crying, and then they turned around

and left. Perhaps you would run after them calling them by their

name because you wanted to help, but they just kept going as if they

couldn’t hear you. You would be left standing there thinking, “If they

would have only let me respond I could have helped them.” How

frustrating would that be?

A lot of times that’s how our prayer lives are. We pray long

enough to get our requests in and then were done – we walk away.

Imagine yourself standing there as the person you loved left – that’s

what God feels like. I imagine Him saying, “Wait, wait I have an

answer for you. I want to help – please hear what I have to tell you.”

What ends up happening is this becomes a one-way relationship at

that moment. God does want us to pray to Him and to give Him all

our burdens, but He also desires more.

Psalms 55: 22 says, “Cast your burden upon the Lord and He

will sustain you; He will never let the righteous to be shaken.”

Hebrews 13:6 says, “The Lord is my helper I will not be afraid

what shall man do to me.”

The Lord wants and instructs us to give Him all our cares and

He will help us. However, He also wants to speak to us and for us to

listen to Him.

Matthew 11:15 says, “He who has ears to hear let him hear.” He

commands us to use our ears to listen to His voice. Maybe you’re not

sure you know how to hear the Lord. Isaiah explains in chapter 50

verses 4 -5, “The Lord God has given me the tongue of disciples that

I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word. He awakens

me morning by morning. He awakens my ear to listen as a disciple.

The Lord God has opened my ear; and I was not disobedient, nor did

I turn back.”

God will awaken our ears to hear Him. We must be willing and

obedient to fully seek Him and His voice. When we come into the

Lord’s presence, speaking to Him, He wants to respond back to us.

We are often in too much of a hurry though to just be still and listen.

Proverbs 4:20-21 says, “My son pay attention to what I say; turn

your ears to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them

within your heart.” The Lord wants to speak to us all the time. When

He does speak to us though, we are to obey His instruction. So, the

next time you’re in prayer, take some time and ask the Holy Spirit to

speak to you. You will be amazed and astounded at what real

conversation is like with our Lord. He wants to continually speak to

us. We are the ones who don’t give Him a chance to be heard

because we are too busy, and perhaps too selfish with our time. Just

as no relationship can work without two people listening to each

other, we can’t survive without hearing God’s words to us through

His word, and through His voice.

What About You?

1. What barriers sometimes get in the way of hearing and

obeying God?

2. What is your heart’s prayer today?

From God's Garden Tools by Gina Burns