"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"
Luke 15:4-6
January 11, 2017
I hadn't read the minor prophet books in the Old Testament for a really long time, because I used to find them boring (to be honest!) and didn't really find anything relatable in them. The past few months, I've been reading them again and have found many verses that either are relevant to the times in which we live, or verses that I connect to on a personal level. Perhaps part of it is due to the fact that I'm reading these Old Testament books in a version that I find easier to understand and comprehend (NLT- New Living Translation); perhaps it's because I'm older now and see the correlation between what was going on in the world back then and what is happening today.
I recently read a verse that spoke about God whistling, which fascinated me! I researched and found that there were 2 other verses that also spoke of God whistling, so I will preface what I want to focus on by mentioning those scriptures:
There are two verses in Isaiah that mention the whistle of God. Chapter five speaks of Judah's guilt and judgement. It speaks of the Lord's anger against His people. Verse 26 says, "He will send a signal to distant nations far away and whistle to those at the ends of the earth. They will come racing toward Jerusalem."
Then in Isaiah chapter seven, it gives the prophecy of birth of the Messiah. Starting with verse 16, it says, "For before the child is that old (to choose what is right and reject what is wrong), the lands of the two kings you fear so much will both be deserted. [17] Then the Lord will bring things on you, your nation, and your family unlike anything since Israel broke away from Judah. He will bring the king of Assyria upon you! [18] In that day the Lord will whistle for the army of southern Egypt and for the army of Assyria. They will swarm around you like flies and bees."
Here is the verse that I want to focus on: I have just finished reading Zechariah. In chapter ten, the Lord is speaking through Zechariah about bringing restoration to His people. It speaks about God sending showers of rain so that every field becomes a lush pasture.... the Lord has arrived to look after Judah, His flock.... Judah will be like mighty warriors in battle, trampling their enemies in the mud under their feet... God will strengthen Judah and save Israel and hear their cries.... The people of Israel will become like mighty warriors, and their hearts will be made happy.... their children will see it and be glad and their hearts will rejoice in the Lord.
There is one sentence that caught my eye and I loved the imagery that came to mind! In Zechariah 10:8, the first line of the verse says, "When I whistle to them, they will come running, for I have redeemed them."
I wonder what the whistle of God would sound like? Would it be loud and piercing or melodious and pleasing to the ear? Perhaps it would depend on the circumstances.
At times, fathers may whistle to get the attention of their children. When their kids are outside playing with other neighborhood children, Dad may whistle to get their attention so they know that it's time to come home. Perhaps he sees his child start to do something that could get them into trouble or that could cause them harm, and he may whistle to get their attention. The child will recognize the sound of their father's whistle and pay attention; or else pay the consequences for not responding.
A whistle may be used by a husband as an endearment to his wife, to show that he thinks she looks pretty. Jon may whistle at me, if he thinks I'm looking exceptionally nice. At other times, he may whistle to get my attention, if I'm in the car getting ready to leave to go somewhere and he needs me to stop. If I forgot something or am getting close to backing into something; Jon may whistle to get my attention so that I know to stop. The thing is, there is a difference in the sound of these two types of whistles, and I can tell from the sound what Jon is communicating to me.
To me, there is something endearing about the thought of God, my Heavenly Father, whistling for His children. Normally, people won't respond to the whistle of a stranger, for they wouldn't recognize the whistle or know why someone would be whistling to them. They will ignore and disregard it; thinking that it must be for someone else. But a child or spouse will generally recognize the whistle of a father or husband. They recognize who it is that is trying to get their attention, therefore, the whistle has meaning and they pay attention.
To those who don't have a close relationship with God, perhaps they won't recognize His whistle, so will not respond or pay attention. But to those who love and know God, and have a close Father/child relationship with Him, they will hear and respond. They will come running when they hear God whistle! They've been redeemed, therefore, there is meaning and significance in hearing the whistle of their Father.
In the New Testament, the church is called the bride of Christ. Jesus is the Bridegroom and all believers are His bride. After He comes to take all of His bride to Heaven, then we will participate in the marriage supper of the Lamb. Perhaps as our Bridegroom, Jesus whistles at us to let us know that He loves us; a whistle of endearment or a melodious tune. He whistles to get our attention and let us know that His eyes are on us and wants a close relationship with us.
Just as a father may whistle to let his son or daughter know that it's time to come home, there will come a day when each of us will hear that Heavenly whistle from our Father (perhaps personally when it's our time to die, or collectively through the sound of a trumpet when the rapture of the church occurs), letting us know, "Hey, I want you home with Me, now! It's time for you to leave what you're doing and come to be with Me! Come home!!"
I found a story from "Our Daily Bread" devotional from 2014 that told this story: On La Gomera, one of the smallest of the Canary Islands, language that sounds like a bird song is being revived. In a land of deep valleys and steep ravines, schoolchildren and tourists are learning how whistling was once used to communicate for distances up to 2 miles. One goat herder who is using this ancient language once again to communicate with his flock said, "They recognize my whistle as they recognize my voice."
John 10:27 says, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me." That may be the whistle of a shepherd. Sheep don't understand words, but they know the sound that signals the shepherd's presence.
Zechariah 10:2 says, "Household gods give worthless advice, fortune-tellers predict only lies, and interpreters of dreams pronounce falsehoods that give no comfort. So my people are wandering like lost sheep; they are attacked because they have no shepherd." There are many misleading voices and distracting noises that compete for our attention on a daily basis. Yet God has ways of signaling us, even without words. He whistles and gets our attention! He reminds us that He is there to protect and guide us, and He reassures us with His presence.
I have never heard the voice of God, and don't know what His whistle would sound like. But I hope that I'll recognize His call by what He says.
It's kind of like how I recognize people. I have a hard time recognizing people by their faces. But I've been able to spot my brother from over a quarter of a mile before, simply by how he walks and moves.
If God told us all that He would announce His return in a particular way, with a specific sound, you can bet that Satan would do everything he could to duplicate that. He would try to fool us into thinking he was really Jesus returning. And he might fool many people. But when we know who God is, it would be much harder for Satan to fool us.
I didn't get where I could recognize Ken's gait in just a few minutes, or even a few weeks. I grew up knowing and watching him. I wanted to grow up to be like him. So I have learned to recognize him. Likewise, we need to get to know God.
7-Can Soup
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1 can meat-only chili |
1 can kidney beans |
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1 can pinto beans |
1 can black beans |
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1 can diced tomatoes |
1 can corn |
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1 can Rotel |
Salt and pepper, to taste (optional) |
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8 ounces Velveeta, cubed |
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Without draining the cans, empty all of the cans into a large pot over high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes to bring all the flavors together. Add salt and pepper, if needed. Dice the cheese and stir it into the soup until melted. Serve immediately.
A few days ago I was babysitting my niece's two kids; Jax, who is age 7 and Jovie, who just turned 3. I did homeschool work with Jax. Jovie likes to pretend that she does schoolwork, too, and Jax likes to teach her; so after finishing his work, Jax was doing some work with Jovie. In the workbook there were pictures of animals with colored backgrounds behind each of them. He was asking her what the animals were and what sounds they made. There was a picture of a dinosaur, which she got right. Jax said, "Wow, Jovie! You are so smart!! How did you know that that was a dinosaur?!" Then he was asking her what the background colors were. He pointed to one and Jovie guessed that it was purple. Jax replied, "That's a good guess! But can you say, 'Magenta'?" That made me laugh!! It reminded me of my Granny Horton. She was a quilter and she had a specific name for every color. It was never blue, green, pink..... it was always teal, turquoise, rose..... If you admired one of her quilts and said, "That's a pretty pink fabric," she would say, "Oh honey, that's not pink, that's rose."
Church is not something you go to, it's a family you belong to. - unknown
We love you!
Loretta & Jon