“As it gets a lot quieter, you will probably notice a constant humming. The hum can get loud enough to prevent you from clarity, hearing the words of Jesus for you. It’s your list of shoulds. The hum of shoulds causes you to overlook the need to hear his words and pushes us too soon into action.”- Alli Patterson
“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed — or indeed, only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken from her.”- Luke 10:41-42 (NIV)
Alli Patterson concludes Chapter 4 of How to Stay Standing with the second and third ways to reduce quiet.
2. Stop the Hum. Certainly, Alli notes, the hum doesn’t want to prevent you from pausing to hear Jesus. However, the hum urges you to jump quickly into whatever you think Jesus is going to say.
In addition, the hum drones that you must do all the work of digging a foundation. Thus, you build your life alone. But you don’t. And no checklist supplants hearing the voice of Jesus.
3. Filter the noise. Above all, you need a filter for the many words of different kinds that meet your ears every day. Hence, Alli counsels, the question you need to use as a filter is: Do these words speak life? And hearing the Word of God on a regular basis enables you to catch whatever you hear that’s leading you down the wrong path.
So, whatever filter you set determines which words you:
- keep and which words fade away.
- listen to as quality sounds and which words are just noise.
- lead to death and which words lead to life.
In conclusion, as we read in John 6:63, Jesus said:
“The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you — they are full of the Spirit and life.”
Today’s question: What Bible verses help you silence the constant humming, the hum of shoulds? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Turn up the volume – Bible”
