Monday 10/14/2013 "Listen"

Dear Father in Heaven:  I love You, Lord, and I give thanks for all things.  Thanks for a new day and thanks for taking care of families and friends.  Thanks for watching over us during the night.  Thanks for the good news about Eleanor.  Please help me today to walk in the light and path of Jesus, and Lord, help me, please, now with the message.  Please heal the seven-month old baby with cancer.  Lord, please heal him, heal this child.  Please, after the message, help me dispatch  it.  In Jesus' name, I pray.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, please pray for seven-month old Riker Wright, who has cancer.  Hershey Medical told his parents to take him home and enjoy the short time with him that he has left.  PRAY, WARRIORS, PRAY.

I do have a few other prayer requests today, including our nation, but let me just hold them until tomorrow so we can focus on this baby with cancer.  Let me get on with the message of today and this week.  Subject, "Listen."

Proverbs 12:15 - The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice.  (NIV)

Luke 10:38 - As Jesus and His disciples were on their way, He came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to Him.  39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what He had said.  40 But Martha was distressed by all the preparations that had to be made.  She came to Him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself?  Tell her to help me!"  41 "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered.  "You are worried and upset about many things.  42 But only one thing is needed.  Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."  (NIV)

Brothers and sisters, "Listen" might be Dr. Charles Stanley's most used word.  In his messages, he often tells those in his flock to "listen."  Listen, he tells them, listen, and then he will read some scripture or put in a very, very important part of his message.  Dear Television Judge Judy, often tells people to put on their listening ears, and/or you have been given two ears and one mouth for a reason.  My dear mamma often told me that, you h ave two ears, use them.  Back in my youth, I thought my two ears were there just to balance my eye glasses.  My dear daddy was more blunt than mamma.  He would just say, "Be quiet and listen before I tan you butt."  So listen I did for I know if he tanned my butt the wax would have popped out of my ears.

We find out in the Bible that our Lord Jesus also wanted us to listen.  So this week, we need to listen, and may I say that besides listening with our ears, we also need to listen with our hearts, and what we hear in our ears needs to be processed in our minds and hearts.  But listen to me, when God speaks to us, most often we hear it with our heart.  Let me back that up with some scripture.

Proverbs tells us that a wise man listens to advice.  And I will tell you that we get no better advice than the advice that we get either directly from our Lord when He speaks to our heart or the advice that we get when we read the scriptures and follow them.  Let us look at the example that God has pointed out to me and recorded in the book of Luke.  Martha has opened her home to Jesus and His disciples and we all know that when we are expecting company we have things to do.  Most ladies, even if their home is already neat and clean, if they were to find out that Jesus and His disciples were coming, it would need to be fine-cleaned, or re-cleaned.  Then, of course, there is food to get ready.  Now Mary, Martha's sister, was there to help, and I would think she did until Jesus arrived, then Mary stopped working and sat down and "LISTENED" to Jesus.  Martha went to Jesus and told Him, Mary is slacking and I am getting stuck with all the work.  Jesus told Martha that Mary was doing what was really needed.  When Jesus speaks we need to stop what we are doing and "listen" to Him.  Jesus pointed out Mary was doing what was right.  Jesus said, "Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."  I would take that to mean Jesus in His way just told Martha to just stop working and join Mary and listen to me.

Dear brothers and sisters, tomorrow we will look for more scriptures about listening and then applying to our daily walk what we have listened to.

Dear Father in Heaven, help us each day to listen with both our ears and also our heart and use our mind and heart to process all of it.  Help us with that, dear Lord, and then help us apply it to our daily walk with You.  In Jesus' name we pray and want to listen.  Amen.

Now go forth sharing your blessings and telling others about the word of the Lord listening for Him to speak to you.  In Jesus' Name, I pray.  Amen.