HEARING GOD’S VOICE

We first called him Princess, until we found out he was a boy; hence his name became Prince.

I figured he must be a boy because he was so intelligent.

Just kidding… it was because he was a cockatiel, and only male cockatiels speak.

Prince could mimic any voice he heard, even sounding like René talking on the phone or me whistling and calling for the dogs to get their food. He could also reproduce the sound of every other bird and even bark like our dogs.

Because of his remarkable talent, I decided to teach him the Canadian national anthem.

My first attempt was to whistle the tune to him whenever I walked by his cage, but Prince needed more. The melody was too complicated; he had to be soaked and saturated in the song I wanted to teach him.

My plan: Every day, before we left for work, I put a dark blanket over Prince’s cage and set the Canadian national anthem on repeat to play throughout the day, all day. With the cover over his cage, Prince’s senses were exposed to that non-stop refrain.

Did it work?

Yes!

Within no time, Prince whistled our country’s stirring anthem, and I was so proud of our patriotic little bird.

For me, I began to see a deep spiritual lesson in Prince learning our national anthem. I could see myself in Prince’s ability to sing like a loyal Canadian; the way I channeled our bird’s learning is the way God taught me to hear His voice, to attune my ear to the music of heaven. I believe it’s the way He teaches all His children.

God has a song to teach us, and when we have learned it in the dark—covered under the blanket of personal struggles and afflictions—then we can break forth and sing it ever after, even in the light.

Prince had an amazing talent! During the day, before I covered his cage and put the Canadian national anthem on repeat, he would learn a little of one random sound and a lot of annoying and entertaining other impersonations, but never a meaningful, harmonious message. He was distracted, never able to sing the song I wanted to teach him until I covered his cage.

In the dark he would try and try again to sing that song.

When he finally learned it, I uncovered his cage, turned off the music, and he just kept on singing.

What about you?

Do you feel like there are too many voices screaming for your attention?

Amid the clamour, can you hear the gentle voice of Jesus calling, saying to you: “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10)?

If you desire to hear His voice more clearly, René and I would like to invite you to attend GYC Canada’s “By Life or By Death” series near Barrie, Ontario, August 16-20, 2023. The theme or our morning devotionals is “Find Your Voice by Listening to God’s.” We will focus on how the Word of God exposes the profound dangers of muting your voice and how listening to God’s voice ends your quest to find your own. The Bible also reveals how you can silence the legion of distracting voices and stop muting your own.

To register, please, go to: gyccanada.org/2023

Jesus declared, “My sheep listen to MY voice” (John 10:27).

Ask Him to speak to your heart, listen to what He says, and let your life sing that message.

Or perhaps you would like to join our team and pray for the young people who will be attending GYC Canada. To become one of our prayer warriors, please, email us your name and phone number to: prayerwarriors@iiw.ca

We will connect with you, add your name to our prayer warrior team, and put you to work.

Thank you for your ongoing support of It Is Written Canada, and may God continue to bless you abundantly!

~ Mike Lemon