
Thoughts
I think today the problem is through all the noise that is out there, it is hard to hear God’s voice it’s like we are Jehoiakim and burning his message through all the constant noise, we might as well be for all that we listening and paying heed. There is just far too much interference out there today — Radio God, is that you or just a lot of static? How can you tell?
Well, the key is to actively, prayerfully, & quietly listen for His Word. That is easier said than done in this Facebook, Text Me, Alert gone crazy world. They say that the under 25 crowd gets more than 40 texts an hour. They are always reacting to the moment and never getting beyond it — so much living in the now. These kids are so much in the now that they are getting nothing done, but overall that’s the message out there, channeling some fake Buddhist sayings that this is the end-all and be-all of life, when in reality it serves Marc and Priscilla Zuckerberg’s (or Eat Pray Love from Elizabeth Gilbert) pocketbook more than it does them.
Instead what they, and remind myself today, that I need to listen closer — a quieter environment so I can tell the difference between the noise of the world, and the whispers of Him Sometimes when I am out with Ruffian, my German Shepherd, I may not hear a thing but the quiet reflection is awfully good for the soul and slowly, slower than I would like, I start realizing my mistakes, and understanding my imperfections. It’s an ongoing process and of course, in the end, Vanity and Pride get everyone…just like Jehoiakim who thought he was better than God and suffered the price.
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English: Jehoiakim (whose name means God will Arise) Burns the Word of God; as in Jeremiah 36:21-32; illustration from a Bible card published by the Providence Lithograph Company (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
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The featured image from the British Victoria and Albert Museum, a 16th century German stained glass piece, ostensibly for a church or monastic institution. It shows King Jehoiakim cutting up the manuscript of the prophecies of the prophet Jeremiah. When Baruch, scribe and servant to the prophet Jeremiah, read him some of his master’s prophecies, the king was so enraged he cut the manuscript with a knife and threw it on the fire. Here the fire takes the form of the portable wheeled brazier at the king’s feet.
The prophet Jeremiah can be seen peering through the bars of his prison in grey in the lefthand rear.