Today

“Today if you hear his voice do not harden your heart”
Psalm 95:7,8

A familiar verse on the walls of barns and the sides of churches all over the place in Northern Ireland. As a verse of scripture it is usually presented to us with more than a touch of anger and not a little threat. But it points to the fact that listening, or hearing God is about an encounter with him, more than an activity. Furthermore, since ‘today’ has no defined limit, for it is always ‘today’ while we live and breathe, the verse is a call to a vocation of hearing. This is our life’s call.

His voice can he heard in all sorts of ways, sometimes unpredictable ways. For Paul it was a blinding flash, for Elijah a still, small voice, and in Jesus the word of God took on flesh. We cannot presume to hear God in any particular way. He will choose his means. The question is always about whether we are ready and willing to hear.