Ears to hear

Proverbs 20:12

Ears to hear and eyes to see— both are gifts from the LORD.

Isaiah 30:21

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”

How wonderful is the Voice of the Lord and how blessed we are to hear that Voice in midst of all the diverse messages that assault our ears - especially in this day and age!

It's one thing to hear His Voice, it's another to walk it out!

I received a very special prayer of encouragement this morning about this daily "Word from the pillow". As I listened to that prayer, God spoke the words from Isaiah: "This is the way, walk in it"!

Again from Psalm 32:

Psalm 32:8-9 AMPC

I [the Lord] will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you. [9] Be not like the horse or the mule, which lack understanding, which must have their mouths held firm with bit and bridle, or else they will not come with you.

Which reminds me:

Yesterday I took my dog to have a bath and his nails clipped.

Only 2 minutes after I'd left him at the Pet Shop, they called me back, as they couldn't get him into the bath!

As hard as we tried (3 of us) he wasn't having any of it, in spite of endless coaxing from me. So we opted for a good grooming instead, but, again, he refused to get on the grooming table, making himself a like a dead weight. A third option was to just clip his claws. This time he had to be muzzled. Even with that and holding him tight on the lead, they only managed to cut 4 nails as he kept jerking his paws away and growled menacingly!

Sadly, we had to give up and go home.

Am I like that when the Holy Spirit wants to lead me in some direction? Do I struggle against God's leading? Does Jesus have to temporarily admit defeat in some area of my life?

Thankfully, the Lord is so, so patient with us and will try to get us to see things in another way.

Perhaps finally he will have to muzzle us too, but He won't give up on us!

In the same way, I didn't stop loving my dog just because he would submit to having a bath and a clip, so the Lord's love is unconditional too.

Psalm 32:10 AMPC

Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but he who trusts in, relies on, and confidently leans on the Lord shall be compassed about with mercy and with loving-kindness.