December 10

Star Parties and Good Samaritans


Be still and know that I am God!

Psalm 46:10 (NKJV)


He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Matthew 11:15 (NKJV)


You were chosen to tell about the wonderful acts of God, who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

1 Peter 2:9 (NCV)


For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV)


Are you a talker or a listener or perhaps someone who just likes to see things get done? Are you more into listening, speaking or doing? We all have our naturals bents. My older son is a lot like me, a listener, I think, while my second son is the talker in the family. It’s my youngest boy and his mom who tend to be the doers--they like to see a job done well!

We all have our natural tendencies, but God calls us to all three! He wants us to listen and listen well, but He also has something for us to say and do as well.

Let me start with listening. The best way for me to listen is to be still--to just stop, get quiet and consider what God is saying . I remember a trip we took to the McDonald Observatory in the Davis Mountains of West Texas. There, on that cold November evening, we huddled on the hillside as a scientist pointed out one constellation after another. They called it a Star Party, and we quickly found out why. The stars were everywhere! I stood in hushed awe. I had never seen a sky so alive with starlight. As we stared into that star-studded canopy God spoke to my heart, See what I have made! He seemed to say. Maybe you've experienced something like this too. It seems nature and God’s Word (Hebrews 4:12) cut through much of life’s distractions and penetrate deep into my heart. This truth captures my attention and motivates positive change within me … critical inner changes of the attitude and heart.

As I listened, as we listen, God brings us light, but usually He wants us to do something with it. Like share it. All of us can speak encouraging words and we should ( Romans 10:14, Hebrews 10:25, Proverbs 25:11), but words are not always enough. God not only wants us to listen and speak, He wants us to do. Kind acts, surrounded by our encouraging words, offer the greatest impact of all. Small acts of love truly touch people’s hearts. Mother Teresa noted this ... and much more. She had it right when she said, "It is not how much you do, but how much love you put into what you are doing."

Whatever our tendency, it should always be in the spirit of love and for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31; 1 Peter 4:11). It’s never too late to love; it's never too late to glorify Him … as we listen, speak and do.


Father, help me get out of my shell to find Your healthy balance … to communicate and to know and to accomplish for You. Amen.