"In case you missed it, the NFL held its annual draft of college players, where the futures and fortunes of hundreds of collegiate young men around the country hung in the balance. While glued to his TV with his family, University of California defensive back Patrick McMorris had seen many of his friends and former competitors being drafted. But he was still waiting.
He was a bit distracted and even irritated when, in his big moment with high hopes, an unknown number came into his phone, and he did what all of us do when those vexatious spam calls come from unknown numbers: he hung up.
Turns out, it was the NFL's Miami ownership group, calling to say they wanted to draft him to be a Dolphin! The call he’d been waiting for his whole life had finally come in, and he hung up. Didn’t have time for it. Mind was on other things. Had to focus his energy elsewhere. Before making too much fun of young Patrick, I got to wondering how often I do the same. Do you?
There are calls – maybe not on our phones but elsewhere in life – that come in. They may not seem urgent, but they’re important. They often are not loud, or obvious. In fact, they can be as hidden as an NFL team on a cell phone call. They come in the voices of our spouses, of our adult kids, of an employee or partner that needs us to read between the lines, of a friend who sounds casual, but we should know that there’s more there. And the calls also come from our Lord.
How are you at listening for God’s voice? Do you notice when His calls, or direction, or unexpected answers, or surprising timing, or change from the status quo come in? Is there something wonderful, something new, something dynamic and maybe even fun that He's prompting you to do with your family and/or friends? Or, does He want you to self-reflect and become way more self-aware, as your actions and attitudes affect so many people around your life?
If you’re like me, and sometimes miss the subtle voice or direct instructions from our Lord, you’re not alone. In fact, from the very first people ever, we’ve gotten ourselves busy or selfish or naïve or self-driven enough to miss His voice."
Are you listening?
- Douglas Howe
He was a bit distracted and even irritated when, in his big moment with high hopes, an unknown number came into his phone, and he did what all of us do when those vexatious spam calls come from unknown numbers: he hung up.
Turns out, it was the NFL's Miami ownership group, calling to say they wanted to draft him to be a Dolphin! The call he’d been waiting for his whole life had finally come in, and he hung up. Didn’t have time for it. Mind was on other things. Had to focus his energy elsewhere. Before making too much fun of young Patrick, I got to wondering how often I do the same. Do you?
There are calls – maybe not on our phones but elsewhere in life – that come in. They may not seem urgent, but they’re important. They often are not loud, or obvious. In fact, they can be as hidden as an NFL team on a cell phone call. They come in the voices of our spouses, of our adult kids, of an employee or partner that needs us to read between the lines, of a friend who sounds casual, but we should know that there’s more there. And the calls also come from our Lord.
How are you at listening for God’s voice? Do you notice when His calls, or direction, or unexpected answers, or surprising timing, or change from the status quo come in? Is there something wonderful, something new, something dynamic and maybe even fun that He's prompting you to do with your family and/or friends? Or, does He want you to self-reflect and become way more self-aware, as your actions and attitudes affect so many people around your life?
If you’re like me, and sometimes miss the subtle voice or direct instructions from our Lord, you’re not alone. In fact, from the very first people ever, we’ve gotten ourselves busy or selfish or naïve or self-driven enough to miss His voice."
Are you listening?
- Douglas Howe
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