Iron Rose Sister Ministries

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Published: 31 October 2017

• Called to Listen

Now, based on what we have each heard, we will share in the Common Threads (an Iron Rose Sister Ministries way of making any lesson, teaching, or reflection very personal and practical). The Common Threads help us focus in on the specifics of what we have heard and guide us into putting those things into practice, all in the context of community. They also serve as a form of spiritual journaling, which is why I encourage you to date them and look back later to see your growth.

Each woman’s answers will be different because we hear unique things and each face different spiritual battles at any given moment. However, we can encourage one another to grow and bloom in those areas, remove thorns that hinder that growth, and hold each other accountable as iron sharpening iron.

Details

Published: 30 October 2017

• Called to Listen

Conclusion

Love God. Love others. Listen to God. Listen to others.

For the past forty days of devotion, we have done exactly that. By developing our listening skills, we are better equipped to fulfill the greatest command (Matt. 22:34-39).
And since you have worked for forty days to create a new habit, don’t stop now! You are well equipped to continue your devotion to listening to God and listening to one another. For me, personally, my renewed commitment to listening can be summed up in the following two phrases, which I have repeated consistently over the past six weeks:
“Speak for your servant is listening.”
“I’m listening to the still, small voice.”

I still find it a struggle to listen. The noise of life invades my thoughts, even as I first awaken. C.S. Lewis* put it this way:
The real problem of the Christian life comes where people do not usually look for it. It comes the very moment you wake up each morning. All your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists simply in shoving them all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in. And so on, all day. Standing back from all your natural fussings and frettings; coming in out of the wind.
We can only do it for moments at first. But from those moments the new sort of life will be spreading through our system: because now we are letting Him work at the right part of us. It is the difference between paint, which is merely laid on the surface, and a dye or stain which soaks right through.

My prayer for you specifically is that the things you have heard over the past forty days not be like a white-washed coating of paint. Rather, may what you have heard soak deep into your soul, transforming your heart, renewing your mind, and filling you with strength.

Love God. Love others. Listen to God. Listen to others.
Thanks for joining us on this listening journey. I can’t wait to hear what God does in our lives from this point forward as we continue to listen!

*Mere Christianity

We would love to hear from you! Please share with us what you are hearing and how you are growing in your devotion to listening.

This blog post is taken from the book Called to Listen: Forty Days of Devotion. To order a copy of this book, please visit our website and invite a friend to participate in the study with you. The book includes additional guides and questions to be reviewed in a small group context weekly.