Daily Devotion, March 6, 2023

 

Devotion:

Read 1 Kings 19:8-13.

For many of us, when God did not appear in the dramatic wind, earthquake, or fire, we would have shrugged our shoulders in disappointment and decided that God had chosen not to speak to us after all. But Elijah had listened to God before and knew to be patient and wait, even to the point of hearing God in the quiet, gentle whisper. Elijah knew God’s voice because Elijah had spent time with God.

Elijah’s situation is not so different than hearing God’s voice today. We often look for God or expect to hear God in powerful, dramatic settings; and we may even mistakenly read a message from God into events in which God is not speaking to us at all. God speaks to me most often during my private devotional times when I am quiet and open to God. Sometimes God is saying that things will be OK and that I should not worry. At other times, God quietly tells me that God will use me to answer my prayer, and then I feel the need to go and do something, to make a visit or a call. Sometimes God’s voice comes to me through that of a friend or family member. We must be quiet to hear God’s subtle messages to us in the ordinary.

Personal Worship Option:

In your prayer time today, ask God to speak to you. Pray for the discipline to be quiet and listen. What is God saying to you? If you do not hear God, don’t stress over it. Pray tomorrow for God to speak and for you to hear. Be patient and faithful, and it will happen!