Happy tears welled up in my eyes.  I was in shock in a good way.  Our lifetime friends were leaving our house.  They were already in their running car and I was bidding them goodbye.  I said to the husband, “Have as good a time as possible visiting your mom.”  To my utter surprise, he smiled at me and said, “Actually, we will have a good time visiting her.”  I knew how disrespectful she had been of her son’s career as a pastor.  She had forbidden him to talk about God in her presence.  Antagonistic was an understatement.  For years visits had been strained.  Until two years ago, he said.  Now living in a care facility out of state, her son had been visiting her and the touchy topic of his vocation had come up.  He told her without an ounce of pride that he had the most important job in the world. Stunned, she actually listened.  He went on to explain that he had the privilege of telling people the happy news that they could be forgiven and be close to a God who loved them.  Trusting Jesus could give them peace and purpose.  For the first time, she didn’t lash out.  In the end, she said, “I don’t understand it all, but in my heart I know it’s true.”  And she has changed.  Her son has a photo of her with a book about Jesus and a big (uncharacteristic) smile on her face.

We need systematic, leader-led teaching about God from Scripture.  We also need impromptu, in-the-trenches life stories from our friends that teach us about God.  I love hearing other people’s God stories. . . how God showed up in their need and showed them he cared.  Stories of material provision, emotional provision, physical provision, spiritual provision.  (Funny how so often this provision came via another human being.)  Then there are the stories about a Scripture verse that just leaped off the page right into a deep place in their heart.  Or a thought that God’s spirit planted that brought help and comfort or guidance at exactly the right time.  Like the story our friends shared today about their adult son and his wife.  One day his wife asked if they could adopt a child soon.  They had had the desire for a long time and it was a future goal, and she felt this was the time.  But being practical, her husband explained that the timing wasn’t quite right now.  She asked, “If someone called us and offered us a baby, could we take it?”  To placate her he assured her that if someone called them out of the blue and asked them to take a child, they would.  The next day they got that phone call.  The husband’s sister by adoption had been incarcerated and her one and half-year-old was a ward of the court.  Would they be willing to take her?

We should be quick to relate stories about what God did for us.  It encourages the hearers.  Just a word of caution.  We should be sensitive to our listeners.  There have been times when hearing a friend’s God story made me feel ‘less than’ because God didn’t do the same thing for me as for her.  God tells her things he doesn’t tell me.  God blesses her efforts more than he blesses mine.  Comparison rears its ugly head and sinks its venomous teeth into my discouraged heart.  So we need to be aware of our listeners’ hurts and not be like Job’s friends who told him stories that made him feel worse in his already miserable state. 

“Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.. .Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior.  Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”  Ephesians 4:29, 31 

And we must remember to be a listener, not just a talker!  We should be humble and let others teach us, instead of having to one-up them with a better story.  Quietly, whole-heartedly listening is a gift we can give to others.  They will feel valued, honored, and appreciated.  

Speaking of listening- did you know that God listens to our conversations?  He is so pleased when we talk to each other about him that he writes it down.  Yes.  Do you make time to have serious conversations with a trustworthy person about your spiritual questions, struggles, and your ‘a-ha’ moments?  Having a mature (in faith, not always in age) friend or spouse who you can bounce ideas off of is a treasure and a safeguard.  Getting wise counsel is smart and guards us against all sorts of temptations, doubts, and discouragement.  I don’t know where I’d be if it weren’t for my beloved husband who has been my soul mate and spiritual resource.  We’ve both made quiet time together a priority when we can discuss whatever is on our hearts.  We shut out the busyness of life so we can engage in true life together.

“Then those who feared the Lord spoke with each other, and the Lord listened to what they said. In his presence, a scroll of remembrance was written to record the names of those who feared him and always thought about the honor of his name.

 “They will be my people,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “On the day when I act in judgment, they will be my own special treasure. I will spare them as a father spares an obedient child”. “  Malachi 3:16-17

“As they walked along they were talking about everything that had happened [Jesus’ crucifixion].  As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them.”  Luke 24:14-15