Listen Carefully to God

Scripture

Our verse for today comes from John 12:29, ” Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, ‘An angel has spoken to Him.’ “

Background

I just discovered a new kind of profession, one that I think speaks volumes (if you’ll pardon the wordplay) about both parties involved. That new profession is called an Accent Reduction Coach. What this coach does is help Indian-born individuals speak in a way that Americans can understand. And she gives five reasons why Americans struggle to understand what she calls Indian English. The first, and most important, is that Indian English does not use American syllable stress patterns correctly. For example, they may say alterNÂtive, while we would say and expect to hear ALTERnative. Additionally, Indian English tends to be spoken fast, and it does not include enough pauses, or pauses of sufficient length. And finally, Indian English struggles with three specific American sounds, the ” T ” sound, the sounds of the letter ” A, ” and those of the ” W ” and ” TH. ” And I would say, if you’ve encountered this form of English, you would probably agree with these particular challenges. As Jesus spoke of His servants following Him, and His desire for God’s Name to be glorified, God spoke from heaven, endorsing and affirming the heart and will of Jesus. But those gathered there were uncertain as to what they heard.

Application

In spite of God’s intent to audibly speak to His Son for their sake, they had conflicting opinions as to what had just happened. Some heard thunder while others heard an angel. Did God speak too quickly or use a southern accent? Was there too much bass in His thundering voice? Respectfully, I would say none of those had anything to do with it. But the message didn’t seem to register, but register is what it must do. God has a message intended for you, and it’s in a voice and tone that is perfect for you. It’s with you in your routines and it’s perfect for every situation. But you must listen for it. You must incline your ear so that your heart can receive it. That much is loud and clear.

Charge

As we seek Him today, refine your sensors so that God’s message is able to get through and be understood.