Lent is a time of grace when we attempt to attune our hearts, our minds and our whole beings toward God. The renunciation of certain foods and sweets are small, yet significant, ways to remember God's proper place in our lives. We may also attempt to follow Christ more perfectly by actively seeking ways to live the Gospel in the setting of our daily lives.
I have been guilty of enthusiastically diving into Lent with a few of my own good ideas without first asking God if these good ideas were His ideas. I'm constantly surprised how simple and straightforward God is in both the scriptures and in my life and I'm beginning to understand that listening is the key. Pope Paul VI said it beautifully: "Of all human activities, man's listening to God is the supreme act of his reasoning and will."
Understanding this is one thing, applying it is another. I have found that, as annoying as most advertisements and commercials are, they do a fine job of piquing our interests with slogans or jingles that stick in our heads longer than we wish. "Can you hear me now?" is one such slogan used by a popular phone company that most of us have heard once, if not over and over again. As good as that slogan is, I think God thought of it first.
I believe that God has been saying, can you hear me now, over and over since the beginning. In the story of the Garden of Eden, we read of God walking in the cool of the day and asking His beloved Adam and Eve 'Where are you?' This question is a relational question, not a directional one. Where are you in relationship to me? God tries to get their attention in a way that Adam and Eve understand, yet, they hide from God. Still, even after the expulsion from the garden, God provides clothes for them. "Can you hear me now?" I still love you and desire a relationship with you even though things have changed.
I thought about Moses' dramatic call at the burning bush and I wonder how many other ways God tried to reach out to Moses. At last, this 'miraculous burning bush phenomenon' got the attention of the humble herdsman. God seems to reach out to us in ways that we can best understand and, for Moses, it was dramatic. In connection with the call of Moses, I thought of the stubbornness of Pharaoh and all of the plagues that were designed to turn his heart toward God and, time and time again, he refused to listen. God was certainly persistent with Pharaoh as He is with us when we fail to respond to His call and guidance in our lives.
Samuel was a man who at first didn't understand that it was God who was calling him. Thankfully he had an older, wiser counselor, Eli, who knew the Lord and helped young Samuel respond properly to God's call. The process of discerning God's voice is something we all have to go through, so we too can say, "Speak Lord, your servant is listening." Often I say to God, "Listen, your servant is speaking!" as if God were my servant instead of the other way around. At those times, I remember Samuel and, in humility, I turn to Jesus and place myself under His Lordship. Maybe during this Lent we can seek out a spiritual counselor who can help us discern God's voice in our lives.
Elijah heard God's voice in a soft whisper; not in the earthquake and storm. Mother Teresa reminds us that 'God speaks in the quiet of the heart,' and through quiet contemplation we can begin to hear His voice calling out to us above the 'buzz', 'hype' and 'fifteen second sound bites' prevalent in our culture. In the same vein, 2 Chronicles 20:17-19 reminds us to 'be still and realize the battle is the Lords.'
"Can you hear me now?"
God can use a variety of people and situations to get our attention. Who can forget, in Numbers 22, the story of Balaam and how God spoke through a donkey? Abraham thought he was too old, Jeremiah thought he was too young, Elijah thought he was all alone, David had 'blood on his hands', Miriam was a female prophet, Jonah was given a second chance and Jeremiah smashed pottery to make God's point. Listening for and discerning God's will is an ongoing task. The season of Lent is a grace-filled opportunity for all of us to rise above the "noise" of our culture to hear the voice of God in our lives and to try to discern what He wants and desires for us.
Jesus tried to get our attention as well with more than just His words. His sacrificial death on the cross was the ultimate "Can you hear me now." God did not withhold His only begotten son to pay the price for our sin and to show a real and visible sign that He loves each and every one of us.
As Lent is upon us, perhaps the gift we can give ourselves is silence to hear God's voice cutting through to our hearts. When we hear Him, be it at prayer, in church, around the dining room table, while driving or whereever God reaches us, let us give God a gift, a gift of saying 'Yes.' Our task is to put ourselves in a position to hear Him each day and to respond to God as Mary did, in total surrender to His will. It may look different for each of us, but as a parent who communicates with his children knowing their differences and personalities, God can speak to us this Lent and, when we respond, we soon realize that His is the only voice we need to listen to.
Yes, Lord, I hear you. Speak, your servant is listening!
How has God spoken to you?
