Proverbs 8:1-11
We believe Jesus is calling to all people from every nook and cranny of life everyday.
It is we who do not look for Him in everything around us.
It is we who are not listening to Him and what He might be saying to us in everyone and everything.
We see what we want to see.
We hear only what we’re trained to hear.
What if we opened ourselves up to genuinely listen–listen in the sense of laying aside all preconceived notions so that we may actually hear something we’ve not heard before..? To hear the voice of YHWH.
If we only listen to humans and seek their wisdom, how will we recognize God’s voice directly, for it is always filtered?
While following someone, that someone is our ceiling.
Why not follow the Holy Spirit directly who has no ceiling?
Key to this listening is emptying yourself first so that you may be able to actually receive.
Here’s an excerpt from the book Fierce Conversations I’m reading right now:
I am reminded of the story of the man who visits the Zen master. The man asks, “What truths can you teach me?” The master replies, “Do you like tea?” The man nods his head, and the master pours him a cup of tea. The cup fills and the tea spills. Still the master pours. The man, of course, protests, and the master responds, “Return to me when you are empty.” The lesson here is that we need to empty ourselves of our preconceived beliefs in order to be open to a broader, more complex reality.
During fierce conversations we are more likely to get all our answers questioned than the other way around. Before we can learn, we must unlearn. Empty the cup!
Before reading Scripture, empty the cup. Then you can listen to the Ruach Elohim and hear Her beautiful voice.
Mark 11:25
If you have something against someone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
We must forgive always if we are to have any peace in this life.
This is yet another law of the universe set in place by YHWH.
You cannot succeed against it. You cannot fight it and win.
Forgive.