Messages

" He said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.’ Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’" 1 Kings 19:11-13

Yesterday I was surprised by a note…on our bathroom mirror. Being that the mirror hasn’t been cleaned in a while *ahem*, I’ve looked at this mirror a lot and never seen this note. Until I got out of the shower yesterday, that is.

The bathroom had steamed up, and suddenly, there it was as plain as day. No, it wasn’t like a note on a dirty car that says “wash me”…although it would have been fair.  This note said “I love U mom”. 

How moving, that one of my kids thought  ahead enough to write that on the mirror, and knew that I wouldn’t see it until the steam revealed it.  It got me to thinking… of course, on how God is also so determined to communicate with us, that God reaches us in extraordinary ways.

Elijah had been running for his life. He was in a cave and waiting to communicate with God. He listened through the earthquake and wind , but only afterward, when Elijah was really listening, did he hear God in the still small voice.

Before I became sick, I became aware, while working with congregations that were facing difficult transitions, that the times I was best at being a pastor were the times that circumstances literally forced me to my knees.  I was so sure of my skills many times, that I didn’t listen. But when situations would come up that confounded me, I would go to God in prayer.  Those times of kneeling at the altar in each congregation are some of the most precious faith times in my ministry. 

Only when things ‘steamed’ up, could I see the message clearly. Only in the ‘fog’, when I was listening and paying more attention, did I hear the God who had been communicating with me all along.

Illness has been a ‘fog’ for me in many ways.  And it certainly has brought me to the place where I sometimes have no clue what to do next. It’s there, on my knees (or more truthfully as a POTS patient…flat on my back) that I listen to God more attentively. I see the signs and hear the directions and encouragement much more clearly.  Only in the fog do I really find the answers clearly.

Whether you are in a fog today, or experiencing a sunny, bright health day, I encourage you to listen and look. One who loves you very much has sent you a message.

As for our bathroom mirror?  I’m waiting to see which one of our kids sees the message I sent back J

Dear Lord, still our hearts today so we can hear what you are saying.  Amen