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Topic: Whispers (01/26/04)
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TITLE: Goodbye to Everydays By Val Walters 01/29/04 |
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It seems that was the description my life had taken for the last few years or so. Everyday looked, smelled and tasted the same. All my days seemed to begin with a rush, peak with a roar and end with whir. No time to think, just rush to the train station, rush two blocks east and one block north to work, rush to eat (breakfast on the way, lunch on the go); rush home before the crowd in order to start it all again the next day. Just another everyday.
Again I found myself at the top of the stairway, ready to descend to the platform to the train to take me home. And there they all were, the other “everyday” people. They rushed, buzzed and whisked by—all to get to someplace. The individuals frustrated at being delayed to their destination, those rushing to the next; the young couples or friends shouted private messages over the sounds of the others, just to be heard. How funny it all was. How used to it I had become.
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He slowly knelt down beside the child; one knee slightly bent next to the other. Softly and gently he whispered something in her ear. As he rose to his feet, a small, mittened hand extended out to reach his. He grabbed hold and securing hers in his, they disappeared into the crowd.
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“Today, if you would hear His voice and when you hear it, do not harden your hearts.”
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As the train raced through the tunnel, it took my mind with it. What made me think of that verse? I don’t even know what he said to her. I don’t even know what made me connect the man and child with God. So long ago I had allowed the loudness of my life to drown out the whispers of God. I wondered whether we even had a relationship anymore. Although I still attended church and read the Bible regularly, I couldn’t say we had one. Not like that. But as I sat there in amazement, I thought, had I allowed my heart to become hardened? When? How? Why? I didn’t even see it happen. I guess we usually don’t. But, it had hardened.
Had I allowed all the things I wanted in life to push Him aside? Had I allowed my free will to become more to me than He was? I guess I had. But, I realized, the promise of hearing God’s voice was still there for me. The option was, however, mine. I had the choice to hear Him speak into my life--rather than requiring Him to yell instruction to me over the crowd. I had to be still and listen.
And I knew He would speak to me!
My choice was to listen and obey when He spoke, and not harden my heart against His words. I realized then that He had spoken to me through the man and child, through hushed tones that spoke volumes. “Rely firmly on me.” He spoke to me through the passage telling me that my life did not have to be another “everyday.” “Release your heart to me.”
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The night tonight seemed different as I walked home. Again, thoughts of “everyday” flooded back to my mind. As I looked up at the night sky, I smiled. ”No more ‘everydays’ for you,” He whispered. “Not Today!”