I take my SPIRITUAL PULSE on a regular basis to make sure I am fully connected to God and living a Christ-like life for him and his Kingdom. Integral to that process is checking on how well I’m listening for God’s voice. I do that by regularly asking myself piercingly tough questions (below) about me being “interruptible.” WHY? Because failure to conduct this kind of introspective examination can easily set us drifting into bad habits that damage our connection, intimacy, and fellowship with God.
My answers to those questions early in my faith walk were WAY off the mark. Not even close, really. That failure came because I tried to hide my unavailability for God by staying busy chasing money and power. But the busier I got, the harder it was to be interrupted (of course), let alone be available to hear God’s voice.
Making that predicament even more suffocating for me was all the fear and worry and doubt and guilt that got stirred up in my nest of busyness. It only made listening to God more “impossible.”
My busyness approach came up short because of this blistering truth knocking around my mind and heart: I WAS IGNORING GOD. Yes, not listening to God…or not being available to hear him…means we are IGNORING him.
God brought me out of that dark hole by helping me establish a habit built around these three fundamental questions:
ONE: Is this GOD interrupting me?
It is common for all Christians—at one time or another—to look at whatever they’re doing as SO IMPORTANT that it cannot be interrupted long enough to listen to God. And if we ignore God like that, we won’t be able to hear him when he wants to interrupt us for something on HIS agenda. This puts us in a position of ignoring somebody’s pain or need because we are too busy to be like Jesus. If we trust God unconditionally, we must leave margin in our day for him to interrupt us.
TWO: Am I too focused on MYSELF?
I need to be on the LOOK-OUT for interruptions because many people are reluctant to approach another person with a personal request or need. I want to be sensitive to the needs of people around me and respond when I sense God’s direction, even if that means interrupting whatever I am doing.
THREE: Am I in touch with GOD’S WORD?
Did Jesus ever say “later” or “not now” to anyone who called for him? Of course not. Since we are to emulate Christ, we need to obey his command to serve others. And that means we have to be LISTENING to him.
I never want to be too busy for God’s interruptions. I want to always be available and listening for whatever he has to say and whenever he wants to say it.
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
Are you LISTENING for God’s voice? Are you INTERRUPTIBLE? Are you sure? Is there any BUSYNESS in your life that is preventing you from hearing God?
“My child, learn what I teach you and never forget what I tell you to do. Listen to what is wise and try to understand it. Yes, beg for knowledge; plead for insight. Look for it as hard as you would for silver or some hidden treasure. If you do, you will know what it means to fear the Lord and you will succeed in learning about God.” Proverbs 2:1-5
