Your Bestie’s Voice

And when Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with the Lord , he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim; and it spoke to him.
Numbers 7:89 ESV
https://bible.com/bible/59/num.7.89.ESV

This week I read Numbers chapter 7. This verse stood out to me. If you know anything about Moses, you know at this point in the story he’s spent some time with the Lord. He spent 40 days on Mount Sinai listening to the Lord and receiving the commandments. He’s heard the voice of the Lord numerous times as he’s led the Israelites.

Do you remember way back when before caller ID on phones? Remember how you’d pick up the phone when it rang and have no idea who was going to be on the other line? Could be a friend, your grandma, or a telemarketer? And you wouldn’t know until they said hello.

But, when it was your bestie calling, you knew her voice immediately, right?! She never had to say, “this is ____”. You just knew and she just knew.

Why did you know her voice without caller ID? Because you spent time with her. Probably a lot of time!

Why did Moses know God’s voice? Because he spent time with Him. A lot of time.

Do you know God’s voice? Would you recognize it in an instant? If not, why not?

There’s this trend in today’s western Christianity that I think is actually harmful to our walk with God. There’s this idea, and I’ve heard it in more than one place, that says, everyone’s busy. No one has extra time, so if all you do is read the verse of the day you’re good to go. Or maybe if you have a bit of time, then just spend five minutes in your Bible.

Now, I think the original intent behind this idea was to not lay a guilt trip on people who weren’t spending time in the Word and to encourage them to do so. I get it. But it still isn’t healthy for our relationship with God.

Ask yourself this: have you ever spent 30 seconds to 5 minutes with someone and felt like you really knew them? Knew their heart, knew their desires, knew their passion and sorrow, their joy and heartaches? I think I can say pretty confidently that none of us has.

Why? Because relationships take time, effort, and intention. We have to choose to spend time with someone to really get to known them.

I’ve been asking myself lately, what kind of relationship do I have with God and what kind do I want? I already know He desires a close and personal relationship with me. And I know I want a close relationship than what I have. And that’s on me! He’s waiting.

So how do we get there? How do we get to know the great God better?

We have to spend the time. And we can’t just read the verse of the day and expect great results. So, I challenge you, and I’m challenging myself as well, to get into the Word and really spend time there. That is the number one place to hear God.

We have to put in the effort. My challenge to myself is to get up early each morning, sit on my porch while it’s beautiful out, make the coffee early, and open my Bible and pray.

We also have to be intentional. Anyone can read the Bible. I just met someone who told me they read the whole Bible with the sole intention of picking it apart and contradicting it. What’s your intention? I ask God before I start reading to speak to me through his word, to show me more of who he is and to reveal to me more of who I am.

I don’t know about you, but I sure want to recognize the Lord’s voice as quickly as I recognize my bestie’s! The only way to get there, is to put in the time, effort, and intention. We can have a relationship with God just like Moses did!