Susan Narjala
Keeping it Real
Respond to the Call — Not the Buzz
I just had a phone conversation with my husband.
Not a big deal, obviously.
Except it was a somewhat big deal because he was calling from Greenland — or at least about 40,000 feet above Greenland.
The man has been traveling internationally for work a fair bit, and he occasionally calls us from the flight. I know, crazy, right? He said something about “Starlink” technology making it possible (I don’t know what that means, but it sounds somewhat intergalactic, doesn’t it?)
When he calls from an airplane, I drop everything else and make sure to answer the phone. Even if I’m on another call or if I’m elbow-deep in cookie dough (when I’m baking, not eating it, people), I always rush to answer. The idea that he is calling as he flies over the clouds is mind-boggling. It deserves my attention. It demands my time. It requires my focus.
I’m astonished that my husband can call me from 40,000 feet above Greenland.
Yet, often, I’m not astounded that the Creator of the universe invites me into His presence.
As our Heavenly Father calls out to us, how do we respond? Do we drop everything else to answer?
I would venture to say that we have grown over-familiar with God’s gentle voice. When the Spirit of God urges us to seek His face, we make excuses.
We have forgotten the absolute grandeur and glory of God. We have grown complacent. We answer to beeps and buzzes — and ignore His call.
Our daily distractions are disconnecting us from the divine.
My local church recently spent several weeks studying the Tabernacle from the Old Testament.
During their wilderness wanderings, the Israelites would enter the courtyard of the Tabernacle every morning and evening with animal sacrifices. They would lay their hands on the animal, symbolically transferring their sin onto it. The priest would then kill the animal sacrifice in a very specific way as prescribed by the Law so as to atone for the sins of the person.
Yet, even after all those rituals were performed, neither the regular ol’ Israelite nor the priest could enter the Holy of Holies. That privilege was reserved for the Most High Priest, once a year, on the Day of Atonement.
But because of what Christ accomplished on the cross, we can approach the Throne of Grace with boldness (Hebrews 4:16). He became the sacrifice, and we became the royal priesthood.
This Holy, Righteous, All-Powerful, Almighty God calls us and welcomes us into His presence.
But we have grown cold in our response. We don’t answer the call.
We respond with, “Not now, God,” as we continue to scroll, check off our to-do list, or answer those pings that plague us through the day.
Can I invite you to stop for a moment today? Press pause. Consider the incredible privilege of entering God’s presence. And simply commune with the One who created you.
When my husband calls from somewhere above the clouds, I know it’s a gift.
But there is an even greater wonder available to me every day. The God who sits enthroned above the heavens invites me to draw near.
May we never lose our awe of that invitation.
And when He calls, may we be quick to answer.
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Comments
6 Comments
Peter
Thanks Susan. And to your very high-flying husband for inspiring this piece. Or at least his call.
Reminds me of a few lessons I have learned from others:
From Simone Weil, French mystic, philosopher and political activist: Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.
From Parker Palmer, American Quaker author, educator and activist: The word call, is from the word voca, from which we get voca-tion. The meaningful is lived as a continual responsiveness to the ‘voca’.
As those whose eyes have been opened to see, we recognise the only voca which gives voice to all is none other than Jesus himself, the spoken Logos.
And finally, from Iain McGilchrist, British philosopher, psychiatrist, neuroscientist and author: “Attention is a moral act: it creates, brings aspects of things into being, but in doing so makes others recede. What a thing is depends on who is attending to it, and in what way.” And “The kind of attention we bring to bear on the world changes the nature of the world we attend to, the very nature of the world in which those functions would be carried out.”
Which contributes to a more stable salience landscape that affords better relevance realisation, which is how we ascertain what’s most meaningful …. What it is that calls out our attention and the voice (or noise) we to attend to.
May we learn to discern the Voice from the noise. The Voice is ‘living’ and calls to life; noise, as a distraction from the Voice, is associated with death, un-life. Attending to noise is un-living.
Susan Narjala
Amen. Thanks for sharing, Peter. May we discern His voice because His sheep know Him and answer His call. Blessings, Susan
Arun
Lord, teach me to be an answering servant to your calls
Susan Narjala
Amen. That is a prayer for all of us who want to be His disciples. – Susan
Ted Senapatiratne
Wow this is just excellent! I need to share this with my younger son who has a media presence and a prayer ministry. He would love the parallel of conversation that you brought! Blessings, Susan!
Susan Narjala
Thanks so much, Ted. Appreciate your encouragement in this writing ministry, as always! God bless.