Who is God asking you to listen to today?

Have you ever found yourself far from God in your thoughts, words, or actions? I often get upset at someone, stop believing the best, start complaining, and then try to get them back… mostly by glaring at them.

I’m consistently discovering that I’m not as close to God as I think I am or want to be.

In these situations, Janelle is great at gently reminding me that God is always just one step away and turning to him returns us to Godliness. She usually does this by asking, “How could we pray about that?” By pointing us towards prayer, she’s asking me to humble myself and let God soften my heart.

2,600 years ago, Josiah became king in Jerusalem. He was 8 years old. His father had been a wicked man, leading the people to worship idols. The Bible tells us that Josiah, the fatherless boy-king began to “seek after the Lord, the God of David” when he was 16 years old. As he began to worship God, he ordered that the Temple should be restored. The people had wandered from God for so long, even their prophets and Scriptures seemed far away.

During the restoration, the workmen discovered a lost scroll containing Moses’ instructions on how to worship and obey God. The people were thrilled… until they read the scroll. It revealed that they’d been living in disobedience for years, and now they were terrified of the consequences it described.

The fatherless king feared that he and his kingdom would fall under God’s judgment, but God led him to a prophetess named Huldah, the wife of Josiah’s own wardrobe keeper. She even lived near the palace.

God spoke to Huldah, and she told Josiah, “Because your heart was responsive, and you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I have spoken against this place and its people... you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place.’”

God sent the King to Huldah to affirm that a soft heart and a humble head are what He desires when we discover ourselves far from Him. By turning to God, the consequences of their disobedience would not happen during their lifetime. Repentance turns us away from sin, but it also turns us towards God and His grace, and His grace returns us to godliness.

When I think of all the people that God could send into my life to turn me back to him, I often imagine a commanding general, a visionary innovator, or a fiery preacher, but I rarely think of the wife of a wardrobe consultant. Josiah’s soft heart and humble head sought the Lord, and it led him to hear Hulda… a prophet who’d been hiding in plain sight for years.

God is always speaking. He’s wooing us to humble hearts and closer contact, and He’s consistently doing it through the voices of those humble enough to have been listening to him when we weren’t. Which is why I’m eager to listen to the prophetic voice of my wife… who also just happens to be my wardrobe consulting professional. Who could He be asking you to listen to today?

Jon Furman
BCC Lead Pastor