Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 1 Kings 19:11b – 12 [NIV].
Recently I read of a tragic incident that reminded me of how God speaks in a very small voice as explained in our devotional today.
Some people were travelling by car in a foreign country, were car-jacked and most of their possessions were stolen. Apparently there was a little boy in the back of their car who had noticed a car following them for a very long time. If they stopped at a filling station they also stopped, if they turned they also turned. They boy had innocently told everybody in the car, but all the adults brushed aside the little boy’s observations and carried on with their discussions. The people following were the ones who robbed them. It’s a sad story and I do not mean to be disrespectful or too wise in my own eyes because it could have happened to anyone, me included. But since this was reported in a newspaper, I believe the authors wanted to warn people to always be aware of their surroundings and anything suspicious wherever they are. There is so much evil in this world.
In the bible verse above, Elijah found that God spoke with him through “a gentle whisper”. As Christians, God speaks with us through many ways – the Holy Spirit, His Word, other people, nature, dreams, prayer, fasting, etc. But are we listening or just too busy doing our daily chores?
In the tragic story above, God was speaking through the little boy. How often do we “despise” the counsel of others even on the basis of ethnicity, colour, nationality, those on lower ranks than us in society and even fail to listen to the needs of our own children?
There are more stories of how God teaches us about being humble. 2 Kings Chapter 5 is a story of how Army Commander Naaman nearly missed his healing miracle because of his pride. A slave girl had told him that if he went to Israel he would be healed of his leprosy by Elisha who was there. When he went, Elisha told him to go dip himself in the river Jordan seven times and receive his healing. Naaman almost refused because the Jordan had unclean water and he wanted to go back to rivers in his own land that were cleaner. After much persuasion by his body guards, the he did as he was instructed by Elisha and was healed of leprosy immediately.
Friends, God uses whatever He wants, especially people that are humble and lowly, things that are despised in this world. He can come to us as a homeless person as Abraham and Lot learned when approached by strangers who seemed to be passing by. He used a little boy’s lunch to feed 5,000. He even warned that some people have entertained Angels without knowing it. Friends how sensitive are we to the voice of God?
Farai Mutsambiwa
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