Hearing His Voice #329

[Jesus said,] “I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you.”

John 14:18

FROM THE HEART OF GOD

“An orphan’s natural instinct is to try to become self-sufficient. He has to; he can’t depend on a parent to provide, protect, and nurture. This has been the spiritual attitude of the entire human race, including you. It’s a deeply ingrained assumption; you don’t expect Me to be the parent you need. You expect to have to scratch and fight for everything you get, while I remain distant and detached. Even when you come into My Kingdom, this attitude persists. It sometimes takes years to discard it.

“When you listen for My voice with an orphan mentality, you decide ahead of time that I will tell you what to do or how to change. When I say, ‘I love you,’ you dismiss the words, assuming that it’s only what you wanted to hear, that I would surely say something deeper than that, or that I would never speak such a basic or remedial message to someone who needs harder truths. When I offer to give you what you want rather than what you need, you object and try to rid yourself of whatever pride caused you to hear the wrong thing. When I declare your complete cleansing, you linger in your guilt so you can experience the pain you think you owe Me. When I offer freedom, you make rules just to be safe. Like an orphan who still isn’t comfortable in his adoptive father’s mansion, you refuse to heed My generosity, My encouragement, and My love.

“Don’t live with an orphan mentality or listen with an orphan’s ears. You will rarely hear My true voice when you do. You can’t hear Me well if I am anything other than your Abba, your Father, your Friend. Your perceptions of Me shape what you hear. Always remember—be thoroughly convinced—that I have not abandoned you. I am with you every moment, closer than you realize.”

Father God, it’s true—I often hear what I expect You to say, and what I expect doesn’t reflect Your extravagant blessings and grace. Forgive me, and give me the ears of an adopted, adored child who expects Your warm embrace.