if today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts...

My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. John 10:27

there is nothing cooler than when i am in prayer and prior to being finished and leaving the church or closet, i ask God for a *word* it's not a test, really; it's kind of a "thing" i like to do that helps me know when i am hearing His voice, truly.

usually, the word is quite random and not one that i would be thinking of at that precise moment, so for the most part, i know it's His voice i am hearing deep within me.

yesterday's word: r e s p o n s i v e

i had no idea what that meant, but i assumed it meant to be responsive to those around me. aren't i already, God? how can i be more present than i already am? oh, there is room, always.

my husband and i work in our own business together which is challenging in and of itself. add family pressures like your son having a second surgery for potential melanoma and your daughter's 12th birthday (party) and father's day into the mix in a 4-day span of time, you can see where we were a bit lax in getting a proposal to a potential catering client. we told her a tentative price, but that we'd get back to her after the weekend.

my husband went ahead and ordered the ribs and chicken (for 70 people) and dry-rubbed them yesterday. i called her just before dinner last night to hear her say, "i'm sorry - i went with another caterer because you never called me back." i challenged her a bit on what she was saying because i was in the room when my dh spoke with her, but it was to no avail and i apologized for the lack of communication. my husband looked crest-fallen.

instead of "drilling" it home with him, i thought of my word "responsive" and told him "God's will be done. no big deal, looks like we're having a bbq this summer after all..." normally, i would have gone on a rant because it is a lot of money to expend that we don't have and potentially wasteful; however, we can freeze everything and have a bbq for our customers (they love it when we open occasionally at night time for dinner) so it's all good.

had i not been responsive to my husband's needs, it could have gone entirely bad. thank you, Lord, for helping me learn how to listen.

really, really listen.