Then Moses cried out to the Lord, ‘What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.’

5 The Lord answered Moses, ‘Go out in front of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6 I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.’ So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.

‘God does not crash your party. He waits for you to wake up. If I am too absorbed in my own affairs, if I am too impressed with my own religion, too intent on bringing my truth as I understand it to the world, I will not seek him, and I will not seek him appropriately. I will do it halfheartedly. The promise is never halfhearted seeking. You will recall, he says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).’ Dallas Willard, ‘Living in Christ’s presence.’

‘The promise is never halfhearted seeking.’ I found that to be the most arresting phrase when I came across it yesterday. There was nothing ‘halfhearted’ about Moses’ prayer. He uttered a desperate cry from the heart in dire circumstances, and He received ‘wonderful counsel’ from the ‘Wonderful Counsellor.’

The Lord answered definitely, specifically and clearly. When God speaks, we may not understand why He shows us to do certain things, but He has His reasons and it is for us to obey.

The American missionary, Frank Laubach, said:

‘Prayer at its highest is a two-way conversation – and for me the most important part is listening to God’s replies.’

Also…

‘The trouble with nearly everybody who prays is that he says ‘Amen’ and runs away before God has a chance to reply. Listening to God is far more important than giving Him our ideas.’

PRAYER: Lord, please give me ‘ears to hear.’

Thought: The word ‘listen’ contains the same letters as the word ‘silent’.’ Alfred Brendel.