Hear the Whispers

One night, while my wife and I were mid-conversation, the sound of my son's cries caught our attention. Of course, due to the affect a child's tears have upon the heart of a father, I immediately stopped what I was doing and went to my son.

Picking him up, I wrapped him in my arms - intending to comfort him. I already knew the reason for which he was crying out for my attention, but he continued to cry inconsolably. As he continued wail and scream, I began to whisper, "Asher... Asher. I am right here; I have you. It is alright, Asher. I am here... Asher." Despite my gentle whispers, and my best efforts to comfort my son with my presence, he persisted to yell and howl - unable to hear my whispers over the sound of his own voice. I desperately wanted my beloved child to hear my voice, and know that I was there!

As I continued to whisper my child's name, I heard God whisper to my soul, "How often have you done the same?" This made me realize that I have done the same thing - over and over again. I began to wonder how often I, in crying out for the Father's attention, failed to hear the Most High whisper my name. Perhaps, we do the same thing; we drown out the sound of God’s voice with the vociferous dissonance of our cries and one-sided prayers. How often does our Heavenly Father whisper our names – and attempt to comfort us with His presence – and yet we fail to notice?

Often, we rest comfortably in arms of our Heavenly Father, yet we are content to keep our eyes closed to His presence and ignore the whispers of His voice. Let us hear the whispers; let us attune our hearts to the gentle voice of our Father. No matter what we are going through, God remains near His children! Though we feel like fussing and complaining, let us take comfort and find peace in the Presence of God – for He is always there and He calls us by name.

 

Heart's Cry

     Something remarkable happens when one becomes a father. This experience brings with it a unique revelation of the connection that is shared between a father and his child. It seems impossible to describe, but it is a connection that reaches past the natural and touches the very heart. Perhaps the best way to express this connection and relationship, is to explain what takes place when a father hears his child cry.
     To a loving father, to hear the sound of his child's cry is much more than hearing - it is feeling. It is to hear the wails and have one's heart moved. It is to assimilate tears of the child. A father's heart is moved to respond to the sounds of his child - to respond to the needs behind the cry!
It is as though the father's heart cries with the child. As his child calls out for the attention of his father, the father's heart wells with tears to meet the need of his beloved. The cries seem to tear the vail of indifference and allow direct access to the father's soul.
     Upon experiencing this connection first hand, I cannot help but consider how God feels when He hears the cries of His children. As indescribable the anguish and heartbreak of a father who hears the desperate calling of his child, so
also is the Heart of the Father for His children. I can only, now, image how our cries touch the heart of our Heavenly Father. When we call out in need, The Father's heart is moved - moved to meet the needs of His child.
      This tells me that EVERY tear and EVERY cry is not only heard by our Father, it is felt. We can be sure that our God will torridly desire to meet the needs of His children, EVERY time we call out to Him. With this new found insight into fatherhood, let us be encouraged to call out to our Heavenly Father and know (without a doubt) that He will be moved by our prayers; and He will answer our prayers according to what is best for us!

-Dusty

Proud!

My wife and I are going through one of the most incredible experiences. We are on the journey of pregnancy. Miraculous! It is truly miraculous.

Currently, my wife is in her third trimester - a point in the baby's development where he begins to hear and recognize voices. This being the case, we feel it is appropriate to read portions of the Bible to him and talk to him. We do so that he may begin to familiarize himself with his parents.

 

One night, After finishing our passage about Moses, I began to speak to my child. As I was speaking, I found myself saying, "I am proud of you!" This brought about an interesting gaze from my wife, and an interesting conversation. As we talked about how someone could be proud of their unborn child, we discovered something. We are proud of our soon-born baby, not because of something he did, because of the fact that he is our child.

We discussed how this is a picture of God's heart! How often has God said, "I am proud of you," not because of anything you did, said, or accomplished. While, I am sure those things matter (mostly to ourselves), God is proud of you BECAUSE YOU ARE HIS CHILD. Yes, we should use our freedom to walk in a manner worthy of the call God has placed on our lives; we should stand firm in the power of God and desire to change the world! Nevertheless, we should also rest in the fact that our Heavenly Father is proud of us. He is proud of us simply because we are His children. With this thought, go forth and enjoy the peace that comes from the favor of God!

- Dusty

"Knocking on the Door of Prayer"

Lately I have been knocking on a lot of doors. It's part of my new job and my new season of my life. And while I was at work the other day, approaching a door, I realized something!
     Knocking on a door doesn't happen by accident. It is intentional! You walk right up to the door you want opened, and make yourself heard!
     The situation determines how you knock. If the circumstances of life are noisy and chaotic, you have to knock loudly - to be heard above the noise of life's events. If the stirrings of our emotions are the only sounds that we hear, we need to be intentional about letting our prayers drown out the sounds of our heartbreak.
     On the other hand, if we find ourselves in the silence of tranquility or solitude, we knock gently upon heaven's gates. If we find ourselves sitting in silence, we can know that our gentle knocking will resound through the halls heaven and reach the Heart of God. When we feel like God is silent, and we yearn to hear His voice, we knock as loudly or gently as we need - and know that God hears us.
     Through prayer, we knock upon the golden gates of Glory, tap upon the heart of our Lord, and walk through the door of His Presence. In whatever season of life we find ourselves (chaotic or peaceful), we can knock and know that God will open the door and present Himself to us! Not only are we promised that the door will be opened when we knock, we are promised that the Almighty stands at the door waiting for us to come to Him!

Dusty D.

A Wall-less Church

The Church, as established by Jesus - after Pentecost, was mission-minded movement. It was intended (we were intended) that it would not be of the world, but sent into the world. It was not to sit stagnate. We are not created to hide our acts of worship behind walls. Our Lord commissioned us to go forth, into the world, with the power of the Holy Spirit, and glorify Our Savior by spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ!
      the church is a place for the broken to find healing, yes. But it is not to be limited to Sunday morning worship services. Of course, we need to go to be fed, and leave to feed! However, we are called to more than simple acts of praise; we are called to more than hiding behind the walls of our "churches."
     If this persists - if we continue hiding behind the walls of comfort and inactivity - God will send a prophet with a horn. Our "church" walls will come crashing down like the walls of Jericho! Perhaps it will take the sound of heavens armies encircling us. Or maybe it will take marching in circles, before we will see victory! It may be that we need our walls to fall, in order to see God's Kingdom Purposes accomplished!
        let us be a wall-less church. Let us not separate ourselves from the mission field. Let us not isolate ourselves from our sacred calling!

“The Long Descent”

“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called,

with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,

eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

There is one body and one Spirit--just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call” (Eph. 4:1-4) (ESV).

                      I often wonder how many of our doctrines pave the long descent to hell. I do not question the sincerity of the individuals who claim ownership of their highly esteemed teachings; rather, I see the danger in holding so tightly to a pet-doctrine that one loosens their grip of Christ. We, who claim to be Christians (“Christ-like” in love, grace, and mercy), fight with each other over the doctrines we favor. We fight in the name of Scriptures; we “debate” in the name of intelligence; we rebuke our brothers in the name of Lord. We do all of this while the world watches. We do these things to validate our reputation of hypocrisy and self-righteousness. We do all of this over things that do not matter to the Gospel.

            Calvinism vs. Arminianism; Supralapsarianism vs. Infralapsarianism vs. Sublapsarianism; gifts of the Spirit vs. no-gifts of the Spirit; Pre-tribulation vs. Mid-tribulation vs. Post-tribulation; Preterism vs. Futurism; … the list of our arguments is long. It is a list that provides many opportunities for us to disagree. It justifies factions, divisions, and dis-unity in the Church – the Body of Christ. When we should be preaching Christ, we preach one translation of the Bible over another (Phil. 1:18).

            When will we let go?! When will we focus more on the work and person of Jesus Christ, than those things which only lead to dis-unity?! Is not the Blood of Jesus more important than pet-doctrines – than our desire to be right?! It seems we have as many reasons to disagree as there are stairs to hell!

            Perhaps we should be more concerned about preaching the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Perhaps, we should focus on our sacred calling and share the Good News. Perhaps we should remember that we are one Body – one Church. Perhaps we should let our preferences fall by the wayside, instead of promoting division.

Let us remember the Work of Jesus to open the way to Heaven. Hell shutters at the Work of our Lord, yet rejoices at our discord. It is time for us – the Church – to walk in a manner worthy of the calling we have received. Let us be diligent to study for ourselves the deep things of the Word, but may we never set a stumbling block before our brothers and sisters (Rom. 14). In the bond of Peace, let us submit to the Holy Spirit “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God” (Eph. 4:13).

-          Dusty

Amen is not Good Bye

           When I am walking with my wife, I do not have a designated phrase to begin and end each conversation. In fact, no matter where we are or what we are doing, the conversation is always open. We do not need a prescribed beginning and end to each thought we share, because we are with each other. We are ever walking and talking with each other – enjoying each other’s company and presence. We have a relationship that is based on more than just conversation.

Should not our relationship with the Lord be similar? So often we think the phrases, “In the Name of Jesus” and “amen,” should begin and end our conversations with God. But why is this? Have we limited a relationship with the Savior to the few moments of prayer each day? Sometimes it feels as though we are “hanging up” or saying “good bye” when we attach an “amen” to the end of our prayers. This does not need to be the case. Since we have the very great and precious promises of God, we know that the Almighty “will never leave us or forsake us” (Josh. 1:5; 1 Sam. 12:22; 2 Peter 1:4). The Lord walks with us by His Spirit EVERY moment of the day (John 14:16-17).

Perhaps, then, every waking moment we should be sensitive and aware of the Presence of God. Yes, we will pray “In the Name of Jesus” and agree by faith with a holy “Amen,” but we should not let prayer be the only time we are attentive to God (Eph. 2:18). As a husband walks and talks with his wife, let us walk with God – aware and sensitive to the Presence of our Beloved. Let us always listen for the voice of God, no matter where we are – whether in prayer or not.

-Dusty