I have really missed my children this week, as it was my
first Mother’s Day without seeing either one of them. I did get to hear their voices on Mother’s Day, which is
always comforting, encouraging and hearing their voices assures me of their
safety and well being. But, there is
nothing so wonderful as seeing them face-to-face and feeling them wrap their
arms around me in a much appreciated hug!
It was with my heart still tender from the weekend that I
received a call last night from my daughter's boyfriend asking me if I had
heard from her. He had been
calling her and she had not responded and her business partner had called him
after he did not hear from her, as well, after several attempts. Where does the heart and mind of a mother
go after hearing that question? At
first I reasoned that maybe she was working and wasn’t able to answer, but then
I realized that I had called her as well that day and she had not answered or
returned my call. Then my mind and
heart began to be anxious and worry threatened to overwhelm me. I voiced my concern to Sarah’s
boyfriend and he said he was on his way home, but would go straight to her
apartment to check on her. After
hanging up, I cried out to God, asking for His protection, provision and peace! The minutes seemed like hours as I
waited to hear from Sarah or her boyfriend. Finally after thirty minutes, I get a call from Sarah’s
boyfriend saying that she was okay.
That afternoon, she had come home and was not feeling well so she took
some allergy medicine that caused her to fall into a deep sleep, of which the
ringing of her phone would not wake her from. He assured me she was fine. A few minutes later my phone rang and as I answer it I heard
the groggy voice of my daughter, saying she was okay and that the medicine she
took had knocked her out completely.
I told her we had all been concerned about her and was glad her
boyfriend had checked on her. She
replied, “He was really glad to see me!” When you haven’t heard from someone
and you are concerned for their welfare you are relieved when you finally hear
their voice. And when you haven’t
heard from someone after repeatedly trying to communicate and then you finally come
face-to-face with him or her, you are overjoyed!
This makes me think about what it must have been like during
the “silent years” between the completion of the Old Testament and the
introduction to the coming of Christ in the New Testament. Hundreds of years
went by without a spoken or written word from God. How wonderful it must have been when Zacharias saw the angel,
Gabriel, and heard him speak God’s answer to his prayers for a child. The truths about God had been
handed down for centuries, but to finally see and hear from God Himself was a
terrifying experience! Yet it was
the most life changing experience of Zacharias’ life! In his unbelief at what
God had spoken to him through the angel he was stricken mute, but in God’s
mercy and grace he saw with his eyes and heard with his ears the first cries of
his newborn son, John, who would have the great God-given task of ushering in
the Messiah!
What was it like for the disciples who had walked and talked
with Jesus for three years only to see Him crucified and buried in a cave, no
longer seen or heard by them?
There was a period of three days where they did not see him, touch him,
or hear his voice. Then when He
rose from the dead and first appeared to some of his disciples, they didn’t
even recognize him! His appearance
may have been somewhat disguised, but I think there is a lesson for us here in
why they did not recognize him. So
often we become so comfortable with seeing certain people every day. We hear their voices, see there faces,
and may even sit down at a meal with them each day, yet do we really hear their
need or see their burden? Just as
the medication caused Sarah to be in such a hard sleep that she could not see
us and could not hear our voices, so too, complacency or rebellion hardens our
heart, closes our eyes and seals our ears, so that we are spiritually hardened
to the voice of God.
Not hearing from my daughter for a few hours and not seeing
either of my children on Mother’s day reminds me of my desperate need to hear
from God and to see Him move in the midst of my every day. Upon hearing her voice I was reassured
of her presence and when her boyfriend saw her he was overjoyed that she was
safe and secure. When we hear the
voice of our Savior we are assured of His presence in our lives and overjoyed
that we will be safe and secure in His hand forever!
Jesus said in John 10:27-28, “My sheep listen to my voice; I
know them, and they follow me. I
give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out
of my hand.” Just as I
anxiously waited to hear my daughter’s voice last night, I must also be
attentive and alert to hear the voice of the One who has known me since before
I was in my mother’s womb! In fact, He says, “Behold I stand at the door and
knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door. I will come in to him and will dine with him and he with
Me.” (Revelations 3:20)
Thank you Lord that you keep knocking at the door of hearts,
urging those who believe to receive your gift of eternal life and the gift of
hearing your voice today through your living and powerful Word of God.
Desperately Seeking Him,
Nancy
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