Friday, May 2, 2008

Busy Signal?

Do you ever feel like you get a busy signal with God? Do you feel like He’s just not answering you? Rest assured that God’s line is NEVER busy and He never screens your calls. He ALWAYS answers you and He always has time for you. He will call upon Me, and I will answer him. Psalm 91:15a

However, we must be able to understand His language and be willing to listen for His answer. We need to understand that He always answers us but it may not be the answer we expected or in the manner we expected. You will receive an answer. His answer may unfortunately be “no”. We need to trust this because He does know what is best for us. His answer may be “not yet”. Oh how sweet that can be…we need to relish His answer of not yet because that answer is full of hope and promise. We know He is doing something grand before He gives us the “yes” we are so longing to hear. And then His answer may be “yes”. We know we’ve hit the mark when we get that answer because we know He would never answer yes unless He knew it was best for us. And if we know He answers yes, then we must’ve been on the same page as Him.
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. 1 John 5:14-15

Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. Jeremiah 29:12

He desires conversation with all of us. He not only wants to hear from us but He wants to speak to us also. He predominantly speaks to us through His Word. However, He will use other Christians and even non-believers to speak to us. He uses His church and the sermons spoken through His leaders. He sends “angels” to us with messages of warning or hope. Everyone who professes Jesus as their Lord has the Holy Spirit dwelling within them. So God speaks to us through His Spirit within us. Sometimes His ring may be the sound of a painful trial that “wakes us up”. He may use that to get our attention to say “This is God…I’m talking to you! I'm calling, pick up the phone.”

The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. Psalm 34:17

He indeed does deliver us but it just may not be in the manner we hope it to be. He has many different delivery methods. It doesn’t always come in the form of the million dollar lottery, or prince charming, or your womb opening, or a huge mansion. He can deliver us from our troubles in many fashions, sizes, and timelines. Quite honestly, He usually delivers us in the most unexpected ways. It’s usually not as speedy as email or a fax. Rather, His deliverance usually comes by boat or sometimes by horse carriage it feels like. Can you imagine waiting a month to receive a letter from a loved one? Being a fan of Little House on the Prairie, I could never fathom how Caroline Ingalls and the girls would wait that long for Pa to write a letter when he was across country working in the mines for money just to pay for Mary’s surgery.

Our God does not rush anything. He is never second late nor a minute early.

Remember the phone line to God is always open. You’ll never get a busy signal. May you also remember that the line is also two way. God not only wants us to call upon Him but He wants to call upon us. We must be open to listening for His call. Make sure you set your phone to a special ring so you know when it’s GOD calling you. Now, that’s a call you NEVER want to miss. Never be too busy with life and the things of this world that you miss the call from the Almighty.

Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know. Jeremiah 33:3
Don't you want to know those things He has to tell you. Call today. Don't delay. The phone lines are open....

Be Blessed in Him,

11 comments:

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

Praise God for open lines of communication! Whoo-Hoo!

Great post, Paula!

Prayers and Blessings!
Rebecca

Anonymous said...

Wow! Great post! I have noticed that since I have started the study at Rachel's blog and I have been in His word that it has been easier for me to "hear" Him. I also find myself wanting more and feeling closer it Him. It is much easier to communicate with Him while I am spending more time with Him. I am kinda nervous though that when the study ends I will know where to go to keep in the word. Do you just pick up the Bible and start reading or go and buy a devotional and let that guide you? I have been a christian since I was a child but have never really spent time in His word so this is new to me and I want to be faithful and contiue to grow.

Also I have left a post of Rachels blog about fasting. I hope you don't mind if I post it here to get your thought also. I wasn't sure if you would go back to check on the comments agian and I would love to hear your thoughts on this.

Ladies,
I would like to get your thoughts on fasting. Today I am fasting for the first time. At our church we have started 10 days of prayer to the Pentecost ending on May 11 th, Pentecost Sunday. We are during this time to be in prayer for our community and its leaders as well as out nation and our leaders. Our pastor asked us to consider fasting a day this week along with other things to get us ready.

I really felt that God was telling me this morning, "this is the day". I tried to talk myself out of it but I really felt he is/was calling me to fast today. I don't know anything fasting but I know I must be obedient. I would love ya'lls insight an prayers.



Thanks for all your insight and taking the time out to read this .

Blessings ~ Christi

elaine @ peace for the journey said...

Paula:
What a timely reminder to ask and then to listen. I'm guilty of "hanging up" too quickly sometimes. I had some good time in prayer this morning and will have some more before going to bed.

God is my treasure. He is the only God who can be known, so I want to do whatever I can to know him more with each passing day.

peace~elaine

Amy said...

Hi Paula,

Thank you for your sweet comment on my blog....I would be very happy to share my story with you.....I will email you tomorrow...I would also be happy to answer any questions you may have.
My story is a long one, so I will think about how to start and go from there.
I feel so blessed that you sought me out to ask; I will pray for you tonight, and get in touch with you soon. God is faithful.

God Bless,
Amy:)

If you have something specific you would like to ask me (concerning my marriage restoration) to start with
you can email me at
amahoney8169@gmail.com. I'm happy to answer any questions. I look forward to talking to you.:)

Angela Baylis said...

Dear Paula,
This was a beautiful post and reminds me of God's perfect timing. It also reminds me to be still and wait for Him to speak to me. A lot of times I talk but don't wait for Him to speak. I need to slow down. You are such a talented writer and I can tell you trust Him and His will. I'm praying for you tonight! Thanks for your vulnerability!
Love,
Angie xoxo

p.s. I respect you so much for seeking Godly counsel. You are a wise woman.

God Chaser said...

I too am glad God keeps the lines of commuincation open. I sometime have the same issue as elaine I move so fast I forget to listen. Pray I imorove in this area.

I also love the scriptures you left my sight.

I invite you other ladies to stop by also.

Anonymous said...

(desert-rose...Kathy)

Please tell me Paula in your heart, God has said, "not yet,"...I feel so much for you, and I know your pain. I pray for you and Chris so often. I know how it is wanting something restored so badly and it has not happened... And even though we do trust in the Lord, and he is doing major, "soul surgery" on our hearts, to become the women he desires.. We live in a fallen world, where we(I) cry buckets of tears for the the lost relationships... Only in him do we find the comfort and peace...And the truth is with God our hope lies... Anyways I took off my blog. I was spending to much time checking, and not enough with my girls.... my email is kmurphy135@gmail.com if you want to stay connected.. sisters in Christ. Kathy

I have a red Gerber daisy that keeps blooming on me.. It is such a day brightener. I think it is a God thing, because every time the flowers are dieing another one comes along..and I had it since the beginning of this storm I am in... God is so good....

SKY4KAT said...

Thank you for the great advice. My mom does live out of state. If you would ask her I am sure that she would tell you that we have a close relationship. It is in some ways. I love my mom, and yes she is a Christian but I am not sure if she has an up close and personal relationship with him.
I would love to be with her on mothers day. She is turning 80 this year-still as active and sharp but doesn't hear as well as she did. I am going to organize my questions in order of importance and send them to her to begin thinking about or maybe even answer so we can talk about them when I get to see her.
I loved this post. It so important to still our hearts when we are praying. All to often it is like we vomit all our needs and requests and then say Amen without spending time to hear our Lords whisper.
Thanks Sweetpea.
Yes, I am 55 and happier and more at peace than I I have ever been. Praise God!
Katrina in Colorado

Pamela (His maidservant) said...

Paula- I love your comments on my blog related to joyfully married verses happily married!! Perfect!! It's late but I will be back tomorrow to read this post. You are such a blessing friend!!
(and I got your name right!!! Yahoo!!)

In His Graces~Pamela

Kelley said...

My Pastor just told us this morning that God's phone number is JER-333. I see that you already knew that.LOL
This is a great post. We learned in church today that when we pray it is not God who we move, it is ourselves. God never changes, it is us who change to become more like Him and in line with His plan.

Thanks for the comments on my blog. I too am terrified of the S___K_ word but that is exactly what my jeans were making me feel like yesterday!

Have a great Sunday afternoon!