July 21

Is 65, 66
2 Ki 19:37
2 Chr 33:10-17

"I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me;
   I was found by those who did not seek me.
To a nation that did not call on my name,
   I said 'Here am I, here am I'.
All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people,
   Who walk in ways not good"...

I remember when I was a kid, my parents would call out to me to tell me to do something, and rather than respond and disobey, I would hear them, then ignore them and pretend not to hear, and go on doing what I wanted.  I figured that if they thought I hadn't heard, I couldn't be guilty of disobedience!  (Hmm...I wonder if my kids are using that on me today...)

Though we are undeserving, God reveals Himself and calls to us.  We get notices of His call in even the most rudimentary Sunday school lessons, in even the most superficial knowledge of the Bible.  We may not be overwhelmed by His presence at that point.  But we know enough to realize there may be something out there, something else, something important we may be missing.  We are then faced with a choice - explore and examine, or ignore and go back to our routine.

I remember when I met Carla, my wife of almost 16 years.  We were a blind date while I was on a visit to Manila from New York.  On our first date, we went to dinner.  She ordered two appetizers to my one, polished them both off, and then proceeded to pick parts of my entree off of my plate. On a first date.  I saw a hint of something then and chose to explore and examine.  And over 3 weeks God revealed to me a wonderful woman and hinted at a beautiful plan, and I asked her to marry me.  We were wed 14 months after we met.  And as I look back on the last 16 years, even the challenges we faced were blessings.  I would've missed all that if I'd chosen to ignore her and go back to my routine overseas.

How much more, how much more completely, thoroughly, exquisitely does God want to bless us when we explore the hints He drops us of His presence?  And, now that we realize He speaks to us even we are not listening, what can we do, what must we do so we hear His voice, and we do not harden our hearts?

Jon Lanuza

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