Not Your Typical Church Lady

A long, long time ago, I asked a high school wrestler if he could hear people cheering for him while he wrestled. "No," he said, "the only person I can hear is Coach." Not being any sort of athlete myself, this was confounding. How, in a noisy, crowded gym full of cheering and screaming people, can a person only hear one voice? He was surely mistaken.

Twenty years later, when I went into labor, I found out that he was speaking the pure truth. When it got down to the nitty gritty, the only voice in the room I could hear was my husband's. He was my coach and whatever he told me to do, I did. I am quite certain there was a doctor and two nurses in the room too, but whatever they were saying was just jibber jabber in the background. If the words did not come out of my husband's mouth, I didn't hear them and I didn't listen. My ear canal only accepted the sound of his voice.

These two memories had fallen dormant in my brain until reading our current Sunday School lesson in Hebrews.

"Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you will be found to have fallen short of it. For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard it did not combine it with faith" (Hebrews 4:1-2, NIV).

If you read Hebrews 4, the emphasis is on Sabbath Rest but that particular snippet wanted me to look at it closer. The message they heard was of no value, because the ones who heard it didn't combine it with faith. Therefore, did they really "hear" it? The "they" in this passage makes reference to the Israelites when they left Egypt. They had seen the wonders and miracles that God provided to make their departure from Egypt possible. They had seen first-hand how God interacted with Moses. They were first hand witnesses of spectacular things. And yet, they still struggled to trust that God would give them victory in taking possession of Canaan. They heard, but not really. They did not combine what they heard with faith.

"My sheep listen to my voice, I recognize them, they follow me, and I give them eternal life. They will absolutely never be destroyed, and no one will snatch them from my hands" (John 10:27 CJB).

There is a difference between hearing and listening. My daughter hears me tell her to clean her toys up, but does she listen and do it? When you listen you are putting into practice what you have heard. God still speaks to us today. He speaks to me. Sometimes it comes as a firm assurance of something that hasn't happened yet. Sometimes it's actual words, though not spoken in a literal voice. Sometimes it happens when I least expect it. Once it happened when I was being prayerfully pesty about a bothersome issue that was weighing very heavy on my heart. As a parent with a child who will come at me relentlessly about something she thinks she needs or wants, I can understand why God finally answered me. I may have been driving him crazy. At any rate, when God speaks, I listen. If he tells me to do something I do it. Over the course of a few decades, I've learned that he has never let me down. He has never brought me down the wrong path. It's a relationship built on faith and trust.

Think of God as our coach. A coach can see the bigger picture. A coach can see what our next move should be even though we ourselves can't see it. Do we hear it? Do we listen? How in tune are we with the Shepherd's voice? When the Great Coach speaks to us, do we trust in Him, or do we trust in ourselves?

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:5-6, NIV).

Athletes spend much time with their coach, doing drills, learning plays, and conditioning themselves for the upcoming event. Even though the workouts may be rigorous and push them to the reaches of their abilities, they know that it's to make them better, so that when they are tested on the field (or court) against an opponent, they will be ready. As a result of the discipline and practice, they are able to easily distinguish the sound of their coach from all other voices. I realize this now, but in a spiritual sense. If there is a big test coming, I want to be ready for it. I want to hear Coach's voice.

"Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion" (Hebrews 3:15 NIV).

Not all who hear, listen. What about you personally? Are you coachable? Do you hear His voice? Are you putting into practice what you've heard? Are you ready?