Psalm 25:4 Show me your ways, Lord,
    teach me your paths.

This theme is repeated many times in David’s Psalms, and God granted his request at least as many times. David had no education, as we think of it, but God taught him throughout his life. Sadly, sometimes he wasn’t listening! David was Israel’s greatest king, but one of the distinguishing episodes in his life was the mess with Bathsheba. He wasn’t listening to God there! God speaks to us in many ways throughout our lives, but we need to keep our hearts tuned to hear Him. We might start with good intentions, but over time we let other things get in the way. As Jesus said, “For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.” (Matthew 13:15) That was said right after He told the parable of the seed and the soil, and His explanation of that parable drives that point home. (Matthew 13:18-23) We should ask God to guide us, certainly, but what is equally, or even more, important is paying obedient attention when He does what we ask. God is the perfect Teacher, but we are far from perfect students!

I have said many times that God seldom if ever speaks to me through dreams, but He did so last night. I was walking along talking with another minister of some sort, and I was telling him in rather impassioned fashion, “We get all tied up about how to pray, but what is more important is how we listen to God.” He responded, “Wow. I think you just gave me my next message.” With that ringing in my heart, now I need to change my notes for tomorrow’s sermon! The message I had prepared was on “God our Teach-er,” so this really isn’t a departure from that, but I need to change the title and rearrange the points, as well as the song for after the message. That’s a lot easier than what I thought I would need to do when I first woke up! In any case, the point for me is to not just speak God’s truth, but to hear and obey it myself. I very frequently quote James 1:22, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” Every time I open the Bible I need to be expecting God to speak to me, and more than that, I need to be committed to do whatever He says to me. On top of that, He also speaks to me in many other ways, and there too I need to be sensitive and obedient. My physical hearing has deteriorated with age, but there is no reason my spiritual hearing can’t keep improving, if I will do everything He says to me.

Father, thank You for this experience. Thank You for that dream, and for teaching me to listen. I pray that I would hear You accurately as I modify the notes for tomorrow’s message. Thank You that You’ve very seldom had me write out messages in full! May I not only hear You accurately, may I do faithfully everything You say to me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!