Today I am posting something that one of my author friends, Cindy Sproles, posted on her daily devotions website, The site can be found at
How precious to me are your thoughts, God! 139:17 NIV
My backyard looks like a mini forest. It didn’t start out that way. In fact, it was a mess when we moved in over twenty-seven years ago. Thickets of stickers, weeds disguised as saplings, and poison ivy. It took weeks for us to cut, hack, and burn the land so grass would grow.
Then it grew. For years we had a soft stand of grass, a tree house for the boys, and a corner burial plot for two dogs and three guinea pigs. A lot happens over twenty-seven years. We outlive our pets, the tree house comes down, and the six trees our boys planted as children rise to over thirty feet. The grass that enjoyed the sun when the trees were small has since given way to moss and though the landscape has changed, I still find myself walking the parameter of our property in early morning…pondering.
I met a woman who wanted to take on our yard as a project. Over the summer I’ve watched her add a plant here, shape a spot there, remold the landscape a piece at a time. Thing is, she’s left my mini forest alone. She said when she’s done, you’ll be able to sit at one spot, follow the pathway up the hill and into the trees. “You can just think when you sit and gaze up the hill.”
I like that…I can just sit and think as I gaze into the trees. I “think” to God a lot. My thoughts to Him are deep, joyous, and sometimes pleading. But the best part of my mini forest is listening to God’s thoughts.
I seem to always hear His voice when I walk under the canopy of the Birch trees. The breeze that rustles through the highest branches, the birds who grumble as I disturb their morning search for worms. God talks to me in the solitude of the shade, in the movement of nature, and I love to listen.
The Psalms are beautiful. David “got” the presence of God. He grasped hold of the world around him and praised God for His omnipresent spirit. Regardless of where he walked, where he rested or traveled, David felt the thoughts of God – even before he was formed.
Sometimes it’s hard to understand God. My human eyes have difficulty seeing past my own spirit and into the eternal Spirit of Christ. When I’ve walked into my backyard, fallen to my knees and wailed my heart before God, He never fails to remind me He is in control. He knows my every need, hope…my every lament. He’s in my head.
Learning to hear the thoughts of God takes practice. It means developing that deep spiritual connection with Him…being quiet, open, and ready to hear. How precious it is to hear Him. How intimate.
Shhhhh. Listen. Be quiet and seek. And you’ll hear the thoughts of the Master too. Listen as He speaks.
Eddie Jones and Cindy Sproles are friends and cofounders of ChristianDevotions.us. They cowrite the popular He Said, She Said devotions and host Blog Talk Radio’s Christian Devotions SPEAK UP! along with Scott McCausey. Eddie and Cindy travel and speak at conferences across the country and they are available to speak at your church or conference. Contact them atcindy@christiandevotions.us.
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