Whenever I’m doing anything during the day, I try to listen to worship music. Usually it’s on my phone and I play it out loud while I’m doing whatever I’m doing. It’s nice background music and it gives me a sense of peace, but sometimes I go back and look at the songs that were playing, and I don’t remember them. I wasn’t actively aware of what I was listening to, so it just passed me by without much of a thought.
But sometimes I listen to my music in headphones. Most times I will still be doing something else, but it’s usually reading the Bible, or just centering myself after a stressful day. Whenever I do that, the music doesn’t just happen around me. I’m aware of it. The words are more impactful, and I feel god speaking to the depths of my soul, all just by playing the same music into my headphones.
Why does this make such a difference to me? Well, I’ve blocked out any external distractions. The sound of the dogs barking, cars going by, people talking downstairs, all of those things are filtered out so that all I can hear is the music.
So this got me thinking: when do I have God on speaker when I really should have Him in headphones?
Where is God trying to speak to me, but the outside noise is drowning Him out?
Where is God trying to pull me close and speak tenderly in my ear, but I’m keeping Him at a distance for my own convenience?
Where am I being disobedient and putting God’s voice on the backburner where I really need to be acting in obedience?
So I need to put on my spiritual headphones, in a sense. I need to discipline myself to block out the other noise and just listen for God’s voice in the stillness that I get. I know this time doesn’t exactly feel restful for me, so I’m learning how to make my Sabbath rest non-negotiable so I can sit and hear what the Lord has to tell me every day. And it’s only now that I’m really realizing how much I’ve put this on the backburner as I’m seeing all of my friends thriving with Jesus in this time where they have so much uninterrupted time to just spend in His presence. So I need to work to develop this discipline now so that no matter what life throws at me, I won’t be shaken because I’ve allowed myself to be firmly rooted in God’s word.
This is a time where we can evaluate where we have put God in our lives. God is always there and He has never forsaken us, but what walls have we put up that make it more difficult for us to see and feel His presence on a daily presence, and how can we work to break those walls down now that we have the time to devote to Him and turn our focus back to Him? I believe God is using this time very intentionally for everyone. For those who are not working, they needed this time of rest and refocusing, and for those who are still working, they needed this time to remember how to fit God into their schedule. No matter where you are on that spectrum, take time to think about why God has you where you are, and what He wants you to do with it. Block out the noise, put on your headphones, and listen, because He will speak to you.
