Listening to God
By Pastor Cahill, January in the Lord’s Year 2012
A summary of the 2011 Listening to God project
What I asked
At the end of 2010 I asked for one year to take some time for us to listen to God. I proposed that those who might be interested should meet with me once a month on a Saturday morning simply to listen to Him for the entire year, and at the end of that year try to learn what it was He had been saying to us.
What we did
A small group of us gathered once each month (with one or two exceptions) on a Saturday morning for conversations with each other and with God.
At each meeting, up to sixteen Scripture readings were printed out and laid out face-down on a table. These readings would be the ones assigned for the worship services of the month to come, so we would likely hear these as we gathered to worship. Each of us chose one in a blind draw, then spent some time in a guided meditation on that passage. After some time we gathered together again to share one or more insights that we believed God had been giving us in the readings we had chosen.
In January 2012 we gathered once again, this time with all the insights on separate slips of paper. Working individually, we sorted these slips of paper into similar themes and ideas, then brought our various themes and ideas together to make a master list.
What we believe we heard
Here is that list of themes, in no particular order
What we apparently did not hear
We apparently did not hear God saying anything to us regarding any specific program, activity, building or financial program, or anything similar. We apparently did not hear Him telling us to build a leper colony or a larger sanctuary, nor did we hear Him telling us not to do those things, either. In short, I wonder if we might conclude that God may be more concerned about how we do the things we do than He is about the actual things themselves.
What we think we should do with this list
Pastor Cahill made two suggestions that the group agreed with:
A summary of the 2011 Listening to God project
What I asked
At the end of 2010 I asked for one year to take some time for us to listen to God. I proposed that those who might be interested should meet with me once a month on a Saturday morning simply to listen to Him for the entire year, and at the end of that year try to learn what it was He had been saying to us.
What we did
A small group of us gathered once each month (with one or two exceptions) on a Saturday morning for conversations with each other and with God.
At each meeting, up to sixteen Scripture readings were printed out and laid out face-down on a table. These readings would be the ones assigned for the worship services of the month to come, so we would likely hear these as we gathered to worship. Each of us chose one in a blind draw, then spent some time in a guided meditation on that passage. After some time we gathered together again to share one or more insights that we believed God had been giving us in the readings we had chosen.
In January 2012 we gathered once again, this time with all the insights on separate slips of paper. Working individually, we sorted these slips of paper into similar themes and ideas, then brought our various themes and ideas together to make a master list.
What we believe we heard
Here is that list of themes, in no particular order
- We are together as one – we are God’s Chose One(s)
- God is here for us
- Worship and Thanksgiving – giving thanks to God for His blessings
- Forgive / Reconcile / Accept
- Look to receive honor from God alone
- Practice our relationship with Jesus
- God’s Kingdom is near
- Pay attention to God
- Have no fear!
- God has hidden blessings for us
- Living like Jesus for the sake of others => living God’s will
- Being Christlike – reaching out to others
- Practicing holiness
- Doing Jesus’ will => humbling self
What we apparently did not hear
We apparently did not hear God saying anything to us regarding any specific program, activity, building or financial program, or anything similar. We apparently did not hear Him telling us to build a leper colony or a larger sanctuary, nor did we hear Him telling us not to do those things, either. In short, I wonder if we might conclude that God may be more concerned about how we do the things we do than He is about the actual things themselves.
What we think we should do with this list
Pastor Cahill made two suggestions that the group agreed with:
- In our planning of projects, discussions at council meetings, “strategic planning” for the future, we should have this list at hand and keep asking, aloud or in our minds and hearts, “how does this project / discussion / plan relate to (any or all questions on the list)?”
- Rather than simply ending the Listening to God project now, we continue in this new year by meeting one Saturday of each month, coming together for conversation, Bible work and prayer.
