a battle cry

I was recently touched (moved, impressed) by the opening words of the song 'The Call';

It started out as a feeling
Which then grew into a hope
Which then turned into a quiet thought
Which then turned into a quiet word
And then the word grew louder and louder
Till it was a battle cry

I realised that this is often how I "hear" the voice of God... as God speaks it goes through a process within me that grows in intensity until I am moved to action by a battle cry!

It is not that I need to be convinced to act in obedience, I think it has more to do with God's way of increasing my faith level to the point where once His voice reaches the intensity of a battle cry, I won't stop and ask a bunch of qualifying questions before getting into action.

When I was still in the military doing my basic training, they trained us to the point that if we heard a command we would obey it without thinking because in the face of battle there is no time to "question why". For Elijah the sequence seemed to be the reverse of a build up, it starts out loud and ends in a gentle whisper. After God answers him with fire on Mount Carmel he hears a rumour that his life is at risk and he runs away in fear of his life and hides. God seeks him out and the event reads like this;

The Lord said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" (1Ki 19:11-13)

God knew what he was doing there, God knew he was on the run and hiding... but that was not what God had called him to do! God asks the question that I have had to be asked so many times when I lost track of what I "signed up" for. When asked "what are you doing here" it forced Elijah to again face reality. He had drifted from his calling and God was gently helping him back on track. The gentle whisper must have had an intensity of a battle cry within Elijah!

This gradual process of hearing God's voice clearer and clearer for me is the precious way that a father builds values into his children by unpacking them bit by bit until the"lights go on" and the child never forgets the words of the father.

I am sometimes slow to respond but this does not seem to phase the Father, he patiently speaks to me in ever increasing intensity until the battle cry is clear. I am not saying that this is how God always speaks to me or that it should be the experience of others, but I am saying that I have many times experienced a feeling growing into a hope, the hope growing into a thought, the thought growing into a word, the word growing louder and louder until it is a battle cry! (Exo. 19:19 reminds me of this; "and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.)

If you have drifted from what God has called you to, if circumstances are making you run and hide, then hear again the gentle whisper of God that will fill your senses like a battle cry so that you can once again serve him with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. (Mark 12:30)