Speechless

Lately, I’ve been trying to open myself up to listen to God, rather than to talk to God. And, really didn’t know how to do it or where to start. So after each prayer I would say, “I’m being silent and waiting to hear you, Lord. Please speak to me…if you are willing, speak to me so clearly that there is no way I can misunderstand your will.” A few weeks passed and I had a dream.

In it a good friend of mine wanted to show me some houses that were being built in a new development near me. And although I can’t associate which friend, or if it was a man or woman now that I am awake, I do remember the house and the neighborhood vividly.

The neighborhood was in a hilly area but not green…the hills were sloping, rocky, and brown like the desert hills in the Mojave between San Diego and Las Vegas. From a distance I could see that each housing lot was graded into the hillside like a pocket shelf. When we got to the street with the new houses, it oddly looked like a war zone. There was rubble everywhere. I felt disoriented. My friend didn’t even notice. He/she kept rattling on about what a great neighborhood this was, how beautiful, the great schools, and the great location. Not to ruin the mood, I kept my observations silent.

We approached one of the models. As we walked up to the front door, I noticed that all the details of the construction were so cheap looking up close. The concrete slab was bubbled and cracked, the electrical wiring ran down the exterior of the house like the buildings in Tijuana, the stucco was patchy and discolored. It was just icky. I kept hearing myself say, “My own house is such a better quality than this…Thank God this isn’t my house.”

When we went inside, immediately I noticed the floor seemed uneven. My friend ignored my comment and kept pushing me to consider buying this house. And I kept thinking, “I am so not interested in buying this house. Why is (my friend) pushing it on me so hard?” About that time, a level appeared in my hand and I confirmed that the floor was indeed uneven…it even felt as though the floor was moving like we were on sand or something. Just then I was ushered out to the backyard to see the vanishing-edge pool. The pool looked great. But the view over the vanishing edge was of a dump. Someone said, “James.” And I woke up. As I woke up I was overwhelmed with the numbers 1 and 27.

“Wow!” I sat up. “Does James have 27 lines in chapter one?” My husband continued to snore. “Or, maybe I am dreaming about chapter 27 line 1. Does James even have 27 chapters?” I couldn’t remember. I scrambled to the bathroom with my Bible, closed the door and turned on the light. No chapter 27. Must be chapter 1 line 27...it’s the last line of chapter 1. James 1:27 says, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted.”

Well, I have to tell you, after a dream like that, wouldn’t you expect to get the message, Matthew 7:24-26?

“Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them to practice is like a wise man who builds his house on rock…But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them to practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.”

I felt like perhaps I was trying too hard...getting messages mixed...so I went back to sleep committing to read all of James the next day.

The next day came and I had already forgotten about my desire to read James further. I went to Bible study just like I would every Tuesday morning. At Bible study, the leader, noting that we were coming to the end of the current study, suggested that we begin a study on - -none other than - -James. And the title is, get this: Living on the Edge. The vanishing edge???

It all seemed a little too coincidental, so I started meditating on James 1:27.

3 weeks. Nothing. I gave up on the passage. Forgot about it entirely.

Then, this past weekend a friend and I had an out of the ordinary discussion on religion…she is clearly conflicted about some things related to the way Christians look like hypocrites when they don’t exemplify the same points of view as Jesus. And while I hate the prove-to-me-that-Christians-(fill in the blank) debate, I want to have this discussion with her so she can see that Christianity is about relationships more so than rules.

This particular friend has a lifestyle and belief system that is different from mine. And while it’s nice and full of wealth…it just isn’t for me…it’s like the house in that dream. But it doesn’t preclude me from being her friend. And just now…4 days later…I am finally realizing that James 1:27 would have been the perfect passage to point her to. And guess what else? Just as I came to this realization, it started to rain – on a clear sunny warm day! (See blog entry Praise You in this Storm)

This particular debate with this particular friend could not have been predicted…we have never talked about religion before, ever. Yet, it occurred, and the dream, and the passages James 1:27 and Matthew 7:24, and the rain awakening, were so distinctly tailored to not only ground me, but to equip me in being a blessing to my friend, that I am absolutely rendered speechless.