Listening Prayer

1God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
2Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. Selah
4There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.
5God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day.
6Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts.
7The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
8Come and see the works of the LORD, the desolations he has brought on the earth.
9He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear, he burns the shields with fire.
10"Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."
11The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah
Psalm 46

Reading this Psalm we can almost hear the sound of the busyness of the earth. We can hear the clash of battle, the bustle of commerce, the arguments and the cheers of success, the groans of everyday toil and the sighs when the day is over. We hear the quaking, the roaring, the rushing and surging as the psalm so poetically puts it. Over this cacophony the Lord lifts His voice (vs 6) and invites us to see Him at work (vs 8). He bids us to “Be still, and know that I am God.”(vs10)

The Bible tells us that our God is a God who speaks! He spoke the word that created everything. He spoke to Abraham and began His chosen people Israel. He spoke to leaders, rulers, prophets, ordinary people, soldiers, women in childbirth, children and youth – people about their businesses and those carefully listening. We read His words of encouragement, warning, guidance, comfort, foretelling and consoling, directing and upbuilding.

I can remember the first time that I realized that prayer was a dialogue; not a one-way stream of requests or commentary - but a conversation in which listening was as (maybe even more) important than speaking. What a revelation! I had never imagined that God might want to speak to me. My prayer times suddenly ceased being times of grocery-list needs or striving to be heard, but rather became a time of interchange or even pure receiving. For me prayer began to achieve a new rhythm and fruitfulness.

Joyce Huggett in her well known book, Listening To God, tells of one such time for her after a service in a nearby Abbey:
“When the monks left the church, I would linger there, as I did on this occasion. And I would be aware that every part of my being – body mind and spirit – were open, attentive to the divine presence. I had done nothing to prepare myself for this eventuality. God had done it. The initiative was His. The miracle was His. By beaming his love on to me in such a way I could feel, parts of me which normally remain closed, unfolded. I suppose I was rather like the water lily which opens itself when it can bask in warm sunshine but which closes its petals when cloud or rain obliterate the sun.
“What I heard in those times of listening was more than a voice. It was a presence. Yes. I heard the Lord call my name. But I also “heard” his tenderness. I soaked up his love. And this listening was on a level which runs deeper than mere words. Sometimes it seemed as though Jesus himself stood in front of me or beside me or above me. This encounter with Him overwhelmed me.”

In our times with God we should expect to receive from Him as well as to petition Him. Although for those of us with busy lives or active families it might be difficult, practically it might be helpful to set aside particular times of the day or particular places of quiet where in uninterrupted peace we might listen for that “still small voice” which so nourishes.

Mike Clarkson