When Mikaela was a little younger, too young for conversation, but old enough to understand “no,” I learned a phrase that my sister was using with my niece. It was comical, yet very effective. When the girls would begin to get into something that was off limits or start to through a little tantrum, we would say, “Hey now…” It sounded funny, but that quick little phrase, said in a nonthreatening tone, was enough to grab their attention and make them stop what they were doing.
It occurred to me one day that this is much the way God deals with us when we start to get off course. We learn that, in 1 Kings 19:11-12, despite what we may wish for, God’s most frequent method of speaking to us is a still small voice. Rarely does He grab us by the shoulders and shout His directions, correction, or plans into our ears. Nope, He is more likely to just give a gentle warning, and we have to be still enough to pay attention (Psalm 46:10). That is a huge reason why being in the Word and giving time to prayer is so important. If we are not getting to know Him on a regular basis we may not recognize His voice. And this is why being still (quieting our minds and our souls) is so important. If we are completely engulfed in our own thoughts and actions we could miss that gentle nudging.
The point is, our lives would be a lot simpler and easier to navigate if we would learn to heed the “Hey now...” warnings of our Lord. Think about it.
