Trained To Hear God’s Voice

Trained to Hear God’s Voice

The Holy Spirit says,

Hebrews 3:7-8

Someone with a hard heart is often full of pride and unable to listen to anyone else. This statement, however, does not describe my dog. Nappy (short for “Napoleon”) is a pretty smart fellow, and he is a good listener, too. He has been trained to understand the meaning of many different words in the English language. When he hears snack, walk, bone, ride in the car, or bun-bun (bunny), he stops whatever he is doing, looks around, and listens intently.

While I was eating my lunch in the cafeteria at work one day, I was suddenly overcome with a bout of hiccups. Nothing seemed to get rid of them until my friend Mary leaned across the table and asked me, “When was the last time you saw a white horse?”

I stopped and thought for a moment, then gave her my answer. Sure enough, my hiccups were gone!

Not too long after that, Nappy sat next to me on the couch. His soft ears were bent back, his head leaned forward, and two sad eyes pleaded for help as his little body convulsed with hiccups.

“Nappy,” I said in an authoritative voice, “when was the last time you saw a bun-bun?”

He turned to face me, staring hard and not moving a muscle as he listened. His hiccups were cured!

In the same way, life is full of hiccups. Bumps in the road. Detours. If we listen carefully to the voice of our Father when we are having some kind of problem or facing a difficulty, he can guide us to find a cure for our troubles.

—Gloria J. Wallace

Father God, thank you for the many times you speak to us. I pray that you would train our hearts to soften and our ears to hear as you lovingly direct our steps. Amen.