As some of you know, I am a special education teacher. I teach students with varying exceptionalities. One such exceptionality is ADHD. Students with ADHD have a difficult time staying focused. Consequently, they struggle with LISTENING UP! Unfortunately for them, they miss a lot of the instruction that is given in their general education classes, not because they were not present but, because they could not focus enough to listen. Thus their achievement at the end of the semester does not accurately reflect their potential.
As I think of my students, I wonder about myself. How many battles have I lost? How many blessings have I forfeited? How many opportunities have I missed? How are my life ‘s achievements much less than my God-given potential? All because I am having difficulty focusing on God’s voice; all because I fail to LISTEN UP!
Life can be really noisy and distracting. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines noisy as, “accompanied by or introducing random fluctuations that obscure the real signal or data.” Noisy! Noisy! Noisy! So many noises; so many loud, sometimes confused and senseless sounds, both on the inside and on the outside. So much noise that we can’t hear the voice of God. But thanks be to God, He has made provision for us to hear, to move past those signals intended to obscure his voice and enter a space where we can hear him clearly.
Jesus modeled this for us: escaping the noise and finding that space. Mark 1:35 states, “And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.” The time of prayer and the place of prayer are important for how well we are able to hear. Jesus chose a time when the hustle and bustle of life was at a minimum. He also chose a place where he could be alone and undisturbed; a place where noise-infiltration will be reduced.
There is something about the time of prayer. The prophet Isaiah also spoke of this time of prayer, in the morning. He was referring to the Messiah in this passage, but it is also instructive for us. He says, “The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned“ – Isaiah 50:4. The NIV says it this way, “He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.”
In the morning, I awake with a blessing, an anointing, with favor on my ears to hear God clearly; to hear His instructions so that I can be guided for the day. Notice what Isaiah was saying. When I hear as a student, as one being taught, then I am able to know what to say, how to respond in season, that is, what is the appropriate word or action for the occasion. When I hear as a student then God is able to fulfill this promise in my life – “ I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye” – Psalms 32:8.
When we position ourselves to LISTEN UP, by choosing our time and place of prayer, we position ourselves to receive instructions for battle, for blessings, and to discern opportunities. If we were to read further in Mark 1, after Jesus came out of that early morning prayer, He was empowered to preach and do miracles. Luke 6:12-13 provides us with another example of Jesus being selective about his time and place of prayer. “And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles….” We see that within that space he was able to hear clearly and receive instructions about who should be on his leadership team.
Position yourself to hear God’s voice; to be instructed!
Be selective about your time and place of prayer!
Make a choice to stop incurring avoidable losses. Make a choice to not forfeit any blessings. Make a choice to put an end to missed opportunities!
LISTEN UP!
What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry, everything to God in prayer.
Oh, what peace we often forfeit; oh what needless pains we bear.
All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer!
Don’t just carry them to Him in prayer. Create the environment (that time and place of prayer) that will allow you access to hearing His voice so that you can leave with instructions for the manifestation of your victory.
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly – Psalms 5:3 – LISTEN UP!
DIG DEEPER: Bible Study – Did you hear that?