Slowing Down to Listen

We live in a world of constant noise and activity. There's always something we can do or listen to that fills the time and the silence. We've actually become really bad at being quiet or being still.

But, I wonder what we're missing because of it? I wonder what the real cost is?

Obviously, we can see and experience the physical cost. The most common thing we talk about about is how busy we are. Often followed by how tired we are.

There's a relational and emotional cost. Relationships with people take time we say we don't have. And when we're constantly on the go, our emotions can easily overwhelm us.

But, I wonder if we really stop and think about the spiritual cost of all this busy-ness and noise? Or, have we become so used to it we no longer realize there's a spiritual cost?

Just as relationships with people take time and energy from us, so does our relationship with God. Just as we need to take time to sit quietly and listen to those we want to have relationship with, we need to do so with God.

But, in our busy-ness and the constant noise of our lives it can be easy to forget this. We try to substitute a quick devotional thought or listening to a preacher while we do something else for the time we actually need. But, in doing so, we miss so much. The spiritual cost of doing so is high.

It's a trap we can easily fall into. I know I do it more often than I want. And we have to intentional about slowing down enough to listen. We have to be intentional about turning off the noise do we can really hear what God is saying to us.

It's actually one of the reasons I look forward to the month of January at my church. As a church, we set aside 21 days for prayer and fasting. The specifics of what this time looks like may be different for all of us, but we get intentional together about slowing down and being quiet enough to hear God's still small voice speaking to us. Taking time to re-calibrate our lives as we being a new year.

I guess the challenge I have for you as I finish this is to reflect on whether you need to slow down and turn off the noise to listen again?

Have you gotten so caught up in the busy-ness and noise of our world that you're paying a spiritual price you don't even realize?

His Presence Changes All

"Rejoice all, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will in Christ Jesus." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)


Rejoice always.

Pray continually.

Give thanks.


Six words. Three things to do that sound simple. But Paul puts them in this letter because they're not what we naturally do most of the time.

When life isn't going as we want, rejoicing seems impossible. It's the furthest thing from our minds. Our circumstances may even seem to be preventing us from rejoicing.

For most of us, much of the time prayer seems like a pretty daunting task. Praying continually also seems impossible. We don't even know what we would talk to God about that much.

Giving thanks. . . and Paul adds, in all circumstances. Sometimes our circumstances are far from anything we want to even try to be thankful in.

If it's so hard to do these things in our normal, every day life, then what are we to do about these words in Scripture? How do we live this?

As I've thought about this lately, I've been drawn back to Philippians 4:4-7 where Paul writes similar words:

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:4-7)

In these verses in Philippians, Paul says very similar words to what he has written in 1 Thessalonians. Paul says to rejoice always, and he encourages taking everything to God in prayer, and says to do so with thanksgiving.

I think there's one more thing Paul says clearly in Philippians that speaks to this:

The Lord is near.

These four words in the middle of these verses, I think shed light on how to live what Paul has written about in both Philippians 4:4-7 and 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.

We can rejoice always because the Lord is near. No matter our circumstances, we can rejoice that we're not alone in them. God is right there with us.

We can pray continually because the Lord is near. We don't have to do anything special to get His attention or time first. We can just talk to Him as we go through our day.

We can give thanks in all circumstances because the Lord is near. We may not be thankful for the specific circumstances we find ourselves in, but we can be thankful for God's presence with us in them.

It't God's presence that changes it all. And it's our awareness of His presence with us that causes us to rejoice always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances. As we do these things intentionally, our awareness of God's presence with us grows.

What We All Need As Christians

What do we all need as Christians?

What is it that should mark our lives as Christians?

"For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting, and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into His kingdom and glory." (1 Thessalonians 2:11-12)

These are Paul's words in his letter to the church at Thessalonica. 

As I read those words, I was struck by one particular phrase in them.

Live lives worthy of God

This is a hard call. It's so much more than just praying a prayer to ask Jesus int your heart. This is actually about allowing Jesus to change your life.

The only way to live a life worthy of God is the be constantly growing and maturing in our relationship with Jesus. This is what allows for and causes the transformation that means we're living lives worthy of God. Discipleship is what this is about.

Discipleship is not a word we use regularly today. So, what do I mean by it?

When I use the word discipleship, I'm talking about the process of growing in our faith. About moving us from the point of salvation to being transformed. 

Some of this process happens as we spend time on our own in Scripture and in prayer. But, there's also a community aspect to it.

We learn from those who have gone before us. We encourage, comfort, and push one another along. This kind of discipleship comes out of relationship with people, not just be being an anonymous person in a crowd on a weekend. In Thessalonians 2:11, Paul uses the example of a father with his children to illustrate what this looks like.

I think we too often miss this part. We focus on salvation and miss the discipleship that must follow. It makes sense in lots of ways. Salvations are easy to count, to measure, to track. Discipleship is much harder to measure. But, if there is no discipleship after salvation, we've forgotten a big part of what being a Christian means.

Discipleship is where ongoing transformation takes place.

Discipleship is where we learn what God's Word says.

Discipleship is where we learn obedience to what God's Word says, even when it's hard.

Discipleship is the way we begin to live a life worthy.

So, how are you doing at discipleship? Both having people and places where you are disciple, and places where you're discipling others?

It doesn't have to be some sort of formal class or relationship for it to happen. But, we all need to have people who are further along in this Christian life than us who are pouring into us and we need to have people coming along behind us who we are pouring into.

If we're going to thrive and have an impact on a culture that is increasingly hostile to our beliefs, then I believe we must return discipleship to its rightful place in the church. As I read and study Paul's letters to the early church, I see again and again, his call to grow beyond that place of salvation. It's what we all need.

A New Year

A new year . . . it seems like this is a time of year when people are more reflective than usual.

The time when they look back on what the year that's ending has been.

The time when people make resolutions or goals for the next year.

But, how long do many of those resolutions and goals last?

It seems like so often, all those good intentions we had have long left by February, or even before the end of January.

So, is it worth it to even do so?

Are those reflections and those resolutions worth the time we take to think about them?

There is value in taking the time to reflect, to pay attention to what God has done in our lives in the last year. We need to remember and make note of the ways God has showed up for us. When things get hard in our lives and we're wondering where God is, it's those memories of times when He showed up in the past that give us courage to keep going.

I also think there is value in looking ahead to the new year. Thinking about what God might want to lead you into. We may not know exactly what God has planned for us in the new year, but we can still take the time to pray about what God has planned, and to surrender, again to His will for our lives.