Listening to the Lord's Voice

Listening to the Lord's Voice

1Sa 3:9-10 NLT - [9] So he said to Samuel, "Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, `Yes, LORD, your servant is listening.' " So Samuel went back to bed. [10] And the LORD came and called as before, "Samuel! Samuel!" And Samuel replied, "Yes, your servant is listening."

Biblical history informs us that those men and women on whom God took the most favor have generally been individuals willing to listen to His voice. Noah, Abraham, Moses, Samuel, and an innumerable collection of others all succeeded in accomplishing the Lord's will because they listened to Him. Here in 1 Samuel, we see a rather unique example of that. Samuel is called up from bed three times by the Lord. Finally, after Eli realizes this is the voice of the Lord calling Samuel, he instructs the boy to “[g]o and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say 'Yes, LORD, your servant is listening.'” What wise advice. The man or woman who wishes to do the Lord's work must be willing to listen to His voice. What man goes to learn a subject while putting headphones in his ears while the professor is lecturing? What does one expect to learn from a sermon if he is too busy catching up on his sleeping deficiencies, or too unwilling to go altogether?

In this same manner, it is of critical importance that the Christian be willing to listen to the Lord's voice. Like Samuel, we need men and women who lie down at night asking the Lord to work through them. People just waiting to hear a message from God. When the Lord calls, “Samuel! Samuel!”, are we willing to reply, “Yes, your servant is listening?”

And yet we live in a world filled with such noise--“Cling and Clatter” one lyricist put it. Our music gets louder and louder every year. Our little iPods are maxed out at full volume. Our tweets and social networks and televisions are all blaring. There is nothing inherently wrong with any of these things, so long as we are able to draw away from it and listen to the Lord. I encourage all of us to take some quiet time to spend with the Lord. Turn of the television or stereo, draw away from the crowds, and spend some time listening to the Lord's voice. I feel like too many times we spend so much time telling God the things we want and need, that we forget that conversation is a two-way street. What is the Lord speaking to us? Not only will you receive instruction from the Lord, you will be relieved. The stress of life will not seem so burdensome. You will learn things from the Scripture, from life's lessons, and your relationships with others. You will learn how you've been acting lately, and what you need to work on. Yes, listening to God's voice also means listening to our own heartbeat. What is our heartbeat saying? Are we doing the Lord's work? I encourage you to spend some time each day to listen to God. The chaos of the modern world will suddenly be transposed into the ordered, peaceful harmony of a world where we are in tune with Christ and His will. Amen.

With love in Christ,

Austin Aldrich

Walking with the Lor

Walking with the Lord

Pro 3:5-10 NLT - [5] Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. [6] Seek his will in all you do, and he will direct your paths. [7] Don't be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the LORD and turn your back on evil. [8] Then you will gain renewed health and vitality. [9] Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the best part of everything your land produces. [10] Then he will fill your barns with grain, and your vats will overflow with the finest wine.

Gen 5:24 NIV - [24] Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.

Gen 3:8 NIV - [8] Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

One of the things that has always struck me when referring to the fellowship between God and Man is this idea of “walking with God.” We first see the phrase implied in Genesis 3, where God is said to have been “walking in the garden in the cool of the day.” The implication is that God's presence was in the garden with Adam and Eve. They walked with God. Again in Genesis 5.24 we see a similar reference, although likely not literal: “Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.” The New International Version says Enoch “walked with God,” but the New Living Translation translates this passage as “[Enoch] enjoyed a close relationship with God throughout his life.” Both versions place an emphasis on this idea of fellowship with God.

But just what does it mean to walk with God? The writer of Proverbs explains it: “trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek [God's] will in all you do, and he will direct your paths.” Walking with God means trusting Him. It means seeking Him with all that we are. It means that we rely on His plans and His own self to sustain us. In this sense, it is perhaps better to say that God carries us. You will very likely find this implication when speaking with a Christian who has rooted himself deeply in the faith. This sort of man will speak often about how God is providing for Him, what wonderful things He is doing in his life, and what good things He has planned for the world. In other words, the man who walks with God is optimistic. He does not know where the path ahead lies, but He knows who is leading Him. That is why the Scripture says “He will direct your paths.” Many Christians like to see it the other way. They wish to direct their own path and drag God alongside them, or chain Him behind them. But this is not what it means to walk with God.

Walking with God means that we focus our lives on Him. He is not something we drag along as a good luck charm, a mere object of comfort or intellectualism, or a bodyguard in times of stress. No man who really loves a woman will marry her just because she happens to conveniently be good at cooking and providing pleasure. The carnal man will say such a thing, but Christians ought not even joke about them. Likewise, the Christian must not joke about His relationship with God. It must not be a mere “get out of jail free card.” Just as the man who really loves His wife spends time with her, makes sure to treat her with love and gentleness, so the man who really loves and walks with God will pursue passionately a relationship with Him. We must remember that it was Christ who first walked this journey: He is the one who stopped to bring us along with Him. Just as He led the disciples, so He leads us daily.

May we allow God to direct our paths. May we, like Enoch, walk with God in fellowship and in love. God, let us be a generation that passionately pursues your face! Let us be the Psalm 24 generation! Walk with Jesus every day. He will comfort you, instruct you, and love you. Most of all, He will lead you to His home, and He will help you find others to begin the journey. Let's start walking! Amen.

With love in Christ,

Austin Aldrich

"Hi, I'm a Christ Follower"

“Hi, I'm a Christ Follower”
Act 16:22-34 NLT - [22] A mob quickly formed against Paul and Silas, and the city officials ordered them stripped and beaten with wooden rods. [23] They were severely beaten, and then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was ordered to make sure they didn't escape. [24] So he took no chances but put them into the inner dungeon and clamped their feet in the stocks. [25] Around midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. [26] Suddenly, there was a great earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off! [27] The jailer woke up to see the prison doors wide open. He assumed the prisoners had escaped, so he drew his sword to kill himself. [28] But Paul shouted to him, "Don't do it! We are all here!" [29] Trembling with fear, the jailer called for lights and ran to the dungeon and fell down before Paul and Silas. [30] He brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" [31] They replied, "Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, along with your entire household." [32] Then they shared the word of the Lord with him and all who lived in his household. [33] That same hour the jailer washed their wounds, and he and everyone in his household were immediately baptized. [34] Then he brought them into his house and set a meal before them. He and his entire household rejoiced because they all believed in God.

A major contemporary problem in Christianity today is the prevalence of Christian culture in place of Christianity. I was talking with a friend today about how focused we have become on getting as many people we can saved and in the church building, but we are not interested in changing them. We live in a nation where we are taught to “get saved and get right with the Lord.” Rarely do religious discussions go beyond this. In many places, church is a contemporary social activity, whereby one gains acceptance into the community by engaging in that society's ritualistic habits. Yet if this is what we label Christianity, we have missed the point, and we are no different than the pagans who sacrificed every year to the Corn King because it was expected to uphold their family and community's sense of honor. A parody video of the “Mac vs. PC” ads illustrates this point with the “Christian vs. Christ Follower” advertisement. In it, one man shows all external appearances of being a good Christian: he is dressed to the nines, decked out with Christian bracelets, bumper stickers, and a mountainside of theological books. Proud of his appearance, he asks a young, casually dressed man what he wears to show Christ. The man replies, “Well, nothing, I guess. I don't know, I just try to follow Christ in the way I live my life.” The video can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RtfNdg1fQk.

The point of this video is to show what true Christianity looks like. Unfortunately, our culture has really begun to believe that being a good Christian means merely going to church every Sunday, praying before supper and bedtime, and not cursing or stealing or doing any of those sorts of awful things. In other words, Christianity has become a mere external shell by which a man's commitment to Christ is shown only in his willingness to dedicate two hours of his Sunday and 20 seconds of his meal.

But is this the Biblical picture? Can we really keep playing Church and playing Christianity? Can all we are really be reduced down to a line in a typical country song or a stereotypical portrayal on a film? The Scripture doesn't seem to think so. Isn't it interesting that every time we see an instance of persecution, witness, or salvation in the Bible, it involves a radical transformation and dedication of one's life? It is a continual pursuit of God that often leads to great suffering and death.

In Acts 16 we see yet another scenario. Paul and Silas, after casting out a spirit from a fortune-teller, are thrown into prison for upsetting the profiteering occurring from the fortune-teller. Notice especially the spirit of Paul and Silas in prison, however. They “were praying and singing hymns to God.” Now, this certainly shows us why we sing those hymns, be they modern or antiquated. Now we see why we pray. We pray and sing because the joy that is within us from Christ overflows and overfills us even in times of desperation. It has been in the moments of suffering, in the moments where I believed God should be furthest away, that I felt Him closest to my heart. Following Christ fills us with an overwhelming love that can't be contained. It spreads out. The scripture says “the other prisoners were listening.” True Christianity doesn't need t-shirts and bracelets, though they may often times be used to help spark an interest in unbelievers or serve as great reminders to us. True Christianity doesn't need a pew, nor a building. It simply needs Christians. If Paul and Silas can worship in a prison cell and impact the prisoners, you and I can do the same! Wherever we are, we must remember who we are following. God's true Church is filled with love and compassion. It is filled with godly men and women willing to die for the truth than to live in separation from God. Christians are so concerned with people that they can't stand to allow the world to live in eternal separation from God.

I hope the picture you see from Paul and Silas presents clearly and precisely the image of the true Christian. Becoming a Christian isn't just a goal. It isn't just something you check off a list and write in your Bible. It isn't something you appeal to occasionally for some cultural value but then do not actively live out. Christianity cannot not be lived out. We must be very concerned about those who have proclaimed Christ as their Lord and yet live for years in sin, never acknowledging Him. The Scripture says of them: “if they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. 21It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them” (2 Peter 2.20-21). Beloved, we must not allow depravity to invade our lives. We must not become cultural Christians, but become Christ-Followers. We must also do everything we can to bring back those who have become that way. If you have become a mere cultural Christian, won't you turn back to God today? Won't you see what it is like to fully and passionately follow Christ in a relationship that is based on love and commitment, not on guilt and social acceptance? Amen.

With love in Christ,




Austin Aldrich

Loud World

Loud World
Psa 4:3-5 NIV - [3] Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself; the Lord will hear when I call to him. [4] In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. Selah [5] Offer right sacrifices and trust in the Lord.
Psa 1:1-2 NLT - [1] Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with scoffers. [2] But they delight in doing everything the LORD wants; day and night they think about his law.
Isa 30:15-16 NKJV - [15] For thus says the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel: "In returning and rest you shall be saved; In quietness and confidence shall be your strength." But you would not, [16] And you said, "No, for we will flee on horses" Therefore you shall flee! And, "We will ride on swift horses"— Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift!
We live in a loud world. Sound levels are constantly rising on our music, television, advertisements, portable devices, and telephones. We want things bigger and louder--we must be fed our entertainment. We mistakenly believe that this noise is the only way we can stay sane. Silence is deafening to us, because we believe it hinders progress. I once had a music professor in college say our society is moving so fast that we are going to hit a bottleneck. I think there is wisdom in that: we are moving too fast to do what the voice of the Lord is telling us. The famous mathematician and great Christian philosopher Blaise Pascal once said, "All human evil comes from a single cause, man's inability to sit still in a room." Old Pascal was right--we can't sit still and ill is to come of it.
God wants us to be silent sometimes, however. Away from the constant noise of life, we are to come to him in quietness and solitude. The Psalmist says, "when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. Offer right sacrifices and trust in the Lord." This is what many call "Christian meditation." It is a vital aspect of our spiritual lives. Without it, our spiritual condition will deteriorate, much as a man who does not workout his muscles will watch them slowly atrophy. Quiet time with the Lord is not only essential, however. It is a comforting, relaxing experience that connects us with God, ourselves, and helps us with our relationships with others. Take time each day or night to find some quiet place to talk to God and to meditate on His word. Some choose their beds, others choose a quiet place in nature, while others may spend that time in their cars. In the midst of a world drowning in noise, their are crevices filled with pockets of silence by which our prayers may go out to God.
The Psalmist also informs us that meditation aids us in learning about God and His laws. He says that those who follow God "delight in doing everything the LORD wants; day and night they think about his law." Just as one studies for a test or reads a book, so too we must learn about God's ways in our own study. It is not enough to merely attend Sunday school and worship services or conferences or university courses: we must have time to study on our own. In my field of software development, one must continually renew his knowledge of new technologies and design philosophies so he won't fall behind on his craft. The same is true with the Christian, although the truths of God are not constantly changing. The Christian must study fervently: he must read God's word on his own and with others. From there, many desire to seek out other useful materials in growing the mind and body and spirit into Christ's image. The more we learn, the better off we are.
I urge you to find some time each day to be quiet before God. Talk to Him, learn from Him--you can only better yourself by doing so. Allow His voice to pierce the constant chatter that surrounds our world. We live in a loud world, but we serve a louder God. But sometimes listening to the loudest voice means listening to the most quiet voice. The book At the Back of the North Wind by George McDonald notes this. The young boy Diamond is met by the mythological North Wind, who takes many forms, both big and small. On one occassion, the North Wind speaks to Diamond through a toy windmill:
There were the sails of a windmill going round and round almost close to his ear. He thought at first it must be one of those toys which are wound up and go with clockwork; but no, it was a common penny toy, with the windmill at the end of a whistle, and when the whistle blows the windmill goes. But the wonder was that there was no one at the whistle end blowing, and yet the sails were turning round and round—now faster, now slower, now faster again."What can it mean?" said Diamond, aloud. "It means me," said the tiniest voice he had ever heard."Who are you, please?" asked Diamond."Well, really, I begin to be ashamed of you," said the voice. "I wonder how long it will be before you know me; or how often I might take you in before you got sharp enough to suspect me. You are as bad as a baby that doesn't know his mother in a new bonnet." "Not quite so bad as that, dear North Wind," said Diamond, "for I didn't see you at all, and indeed I don't see you yet, although I recognise your voice. Do grow a little, please."
We all ask God to grow a little, don't we? We want Him to be just as loud as our world. Sometimes we must simply be quiet and listen to His tiny voice. You see, it is not the size of something that makes it large: it is the nature of the thing itself. God, while infinitely large, lives in our tiny hearts. What a concept! Listen to His voice today. Amen.

With love in Christ,



Austin Aldrich

Faith with Works

Faith with Works
Jam 2:14-20 NLT - [14] Dear brothers and sisters, what's the use of saying you have faith if you don't prove it by your actions? That kind of faith can't save anyone. [15] Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing, [16] and you say, "Well, good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well"--but then you don't give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? [17] So you see, it isn't enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn't show itself by good deeds is no faith at all--it is dead and useless. [18] Now someone may argue, "Some people have faith; others have good deeds." I say, "I can't see your faith if you don't have good deeds, but I will show you my faith through my good deeds." [19] Do you still think it's enough just to believe that there is one God? Well, even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror! [20] Fool! When will you ever learn that faith that does not result in good deeds is useless?

What does Saint James mean when he speaks of faith and works? It is an age-old question that has sparked debate over many ages. Is it enough to have faith, or must we prove our faith through works? This is naturally troubling to many Christians, given that we are taught that "it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast" (Ephesians 2.8-9, NIV). The issue here, though perhaps seemingly academic and unrelated to our everyday lives, actually contains a solution which is vitally important to our daily lives.

Let us consider what James says: "it isn't enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn't show itself by good deeds is no faith at all--it is dead and useless." Faith without works is dead not because it once lived, but because it never existed in the first place. James explains this when he says that he "will show you [his] faith through [his] good deeds." Faith, then, is like a light that shines itself through a glass window. The light itself exists, but it manifests itself through its shining down on the building. Faith, then, serves a purpose. It is both a verb and a noun. As a noun it is known as faith, but as a verb it is called works. The man who proposes otherwise is as naive as the sort of man who tries to argue four quarters and a dollar are not at all the same. He may be technically correct in his assertion that the two are different, for one is made of paper and the other of zinc, but the two are functionally the same.

Now, what is the significance of works? It is a natural display of our faith. If Christ indeed lives within us, He will also live without us. What I mean to say is that He radiates through us, like the infectious smile of a young lover or an innocent child. What radiates is called works. As Saint James says, works would not merely proclaim "good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well," but then do nothing for the person on whom we are pronouncing blessings. Rather, it takes the "brother or sister who needs food or clothing" and gives him food and clothing." Christ's compassion flows through us, for He is indeed living within us. It is often said that the Church is losing its relevance, for the sort of goodness it once gave to the world is now administered through government ministries and non-profit groups. I say that the mission of the Church is more vital than ever, for it is not the mere physical bodies which we are trying to save, but the soul of the whole person. A Christian who concerns himself with these matters obviously demonstrates faith by his works. His works are evidence that he is, in fact, living his life through the Holy Spirit.

Consider today whether your faith is being demonstrated. Like a dusty window, our faith can grow dim. The windows must be cleaned for light to come through. Let us examine ourselves. Are we doing things which please Christ? Is our faith evident to others? How will others see the Gospel if they do not see us living it out day by day? Amen.

With love in Christ,



Austin Aldrich