Grains of Sand

Genesis 3 What does the God sound like when He walks? “ Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. ” (3:8, NIV) Is it the sound of wind rustling through the trees? Is it a rumble as the earth moves beneath His feet? Does the thunder roll ahead of Him announcing His coming? Is there the sound of rushing water? What does God sound like when He comes? However He may manifest Himself I only ask that He clear away the noise in my life so that I don’t miss the sound of His coming to me or the words that He wishes to speak. I ask that He keep me close to Him this day so that when I come to its end I will not be ashamed of what I have said or done and feel the need to hide myself from Him—as if I could! If I listen for His sound, and if I take heed to His words when He speaks, I will likely not have any reason to hide when the end of this day ...

Reading: Hebrews 9-13 The book of Hebrews is so rich. As I’ve read through it this week so many things jumped off the page. Since I have a series of studies on The Ten Commandments cooking away on the back burner of my mind, there was one verse in particular that struck me this morning as I read these wonderful chapters. In Hebrews 12:18-29, the writer is describing in general terms the experience that Israel went through at the foot of Mount Sinai when God handed down The Ten Commandments to Moses. The Israelites had just come from a country of many gods. The Egyptians had a god for just about everything. But not a single one of those gods ever spoke to anyone about anything. At the foot of Sinai, God’s chosen instrument, Israel, watched as God descended on the mountaintop. Clouds, thunder, lightening, a display of power that had them shivering in their sandals, met them as they waited. The silence of the false gods of Egypt sharply contrasted with the awe-inspiring voice o...

Every so often the soul cries out to God for a word of affirmation. Is this the right direction, Lord? Is this what you want me to do? What should my priorities be in the midst of so many opportunities and options? Last week I was in "retreat," participating with our staff and missionaries in our annual get-away for fellowship, refreshing and teaching. Over my years with Fellowship International I've been to many of these "MI" gatherings but somehow this one was different and special. It was wonderful to see how international the mission has become. Just at MI alone we had Indian, Lebanese and African personnel present along with our more traditionally "Canadian" crew. There was a freedom to share even the most intimate details and some who had carried the burden of deep family pain were able to tell the rest of us and experience the blessing of being prayed for. The retreat center, Crieff Hills Community, is one of those spots where quiet and medi...