Some sounds rise loud and clear and our senses are alert, heightened to every nuance, change of pitch and tone.

New parents seek shades of meaning in every utterance their infant makes.

My son and his wife are at the stage of learning and interpreting every vocal expression of their month-old baby son.

They listen hard. With intention and purpose. Ready to act on whatever messages they receive. 

Ready to provide their newborn with all the care, comfort, love and protection he needs.
A little later on, they will delight in every coo, sigh, chuckle, gurgle and giggle he makes before recognisable words are shaped and formed.
Most will seem indecipherable to those who are not ‘in the know’. But these two will become experts in analysing each intonation, finding them infinitely precious and meaningful to them alone until others can understand and interpret them too.
We all long for connection. Desire to communicate. To express ourselves. Be heard. Understood. 
And when it happens ~ links form, tangled threads let loose that bind one person to another in harmony.
If we have such a strong in-built desire to be heard, listened to and taken seriously, then think how important it is for God to make Himself known to us in a similar fashion.
It begs the question:Are we listening? Paying keen attention? Or have we largely switched off to Him?
When 2013 began, I was greatly blessed in reading ‘Jesus Calling’ by Sarah Young and found that God started to speak to me too.

 

I decided to record those words that God whispered to my heart as ‘Prayer Whispers’.
At first, it felt like I had a clear line, no fogginess or indistinct blurring.
So I scribbled the thoughts down in a prayer journal.
Some got shared here.
Most felt private for me or maybe I just lacked courage to declare them as ‘words from above’ ~ after all, who am I? I’m nobody special. Just a woman seeking to follow God’s heart and leading for her life.

 

Over time, they lessened (or I got bad at hearing them) and became infrequent.

But all the more precious for their rarity.

Just before the new year began, I heard quite distinctly. Though I wavered, challenged, questioned…Is this really You, God?




He made it clear. I had a new ‘word’ for 2014 and it was ~ ‘Listen’.

 

 

Every whisper on the wind might be the sound of His voice.

Every person I communicate with might need me to listen more intently to their words or to the hidden message in their heart. Read gestures, posture, expressions, sighs.

Every stir in the air around might be God speaking to me through creation.

Perhaps this is not only a natural follow on to last year’s injunction to ‘Come’, but a way of ensuring I’m in the best position possible to catch it all.

So what happens next? How do I assist the listening process?

By joining the #oneword365 challenge, making my intentions public (no backing out now), plus writing my first post about listening and why it’s so important to me on poetryjoy.com followed by this one and more to come as the months unfold.

Aiming to read ‘Listening to your life’ Daily Meditations by Frederick Beuchner.

I am also taking part in the 2014 Mindful Writing Challenge because I need all the help I can get to deliberately notice and pay attention to my life.

And to close with here is today’s #smallstone offering of mindfulness

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Commencing black and blue

dissolving into rainbow-shadowed hue

a central core of white-hot heat and light

burning radiantly, glowing bright

standing sentinel, upright and strong

until the slightest breeze comes along

then bending, dancing, sway and quiver

like a frightened child all a-shiver”

Life, objects around, voices, words, every sound, appear changed, transformed and new when viewed with eyes opening in surprise beyond their everyday guise.

My hope and prayer is that you will discover the joy of listening too, so you don’t miss the words God is trying to get across to you.

“God speaks in the silence of the heart. Listening is the beginning of prayer” ~ Mother Teresa

And do share what you are learning. I would love to know about your journey. We can support and encourage one another here.

Do you have a ‘word’ for 2014? 

Has God spoken to you lately in ways you just couldn’t miss? 

Please feel free to share in the comments below.

May this be a blessed and happy new year of hearing and receiving God’s best for your life!

Linking here with Lyli, Emily and Jennifer