Catholic Diocese of Spokane, Washington

From the

Official News Magazine of the Diocese of Spokane

(From the Sept. 29, 2005 edition of the Inland Register)

You have probably seen the television commercial for a cell phone company showing a man walking all over the world. Every few steps he pauses and says into the phone, “Can you hear me now?”

It strikes me; this man on the phone is a good image of how persistently God is trying to communicate with us. Every few moments, in some way or another, God is patiently whispering in my ear, “Can you hear me now?”

Sometimes my response is to grab the phone and yell, “Oh yes, God, I hear you loud clear.” Other times I don’t even hear the phone ringing.

There are many different reasons why we may not hear the voice of God at any given time in our lives. But I think underlying most all of them is fear. Because of our fear we become preoccupied with any number of things. We can be busy having a fun time. We can be absorbed with worry, or immersed in our work. We can be consumed with gathering and taking care of our material possessions. Whatever it is that engages our attention so fully makes it difficult for God to get through to us.

For me, the culprit is often a sense of over-responsibility. I think I have to solve my children’s problems, my husband’s problems, the world’s problems. I’m so caught up in planning for the future, that I’m not available to what’s happening now.

Here’s an example. One morning at the end of summer, as I worked in my study, I heard my son get up and go down for breakfast. I thought to myself that I should go down and say “good morning” and spend a few moments with him as he started his day. So I did, but then I proceed to talk about how school would start in a few weeks, and what supplies did he need? Did he need new shoes? And, by the way, why didn’t he tie his shoes? And could he go through his drawers and figure out what clothes he’d outgrown? His face turned sullen, and after awhile he burst out, “I don’t want to do all this right now, I’m eating breakfast.”

“I didn’t mean you have to do it right now, “I said, “I was just planning aloud.” But I realize it would have been better for him had I stayed in my study. Or if I weren’t so preoccupied and anxious about everything I needed to do before schools started, I might have heard God’s voice telling me to treasure a moment with my son. That’s my guess, at least. I’ll never know for sure what God might have been telling me because I wasn’t listening.

Deep down, most of us are afraid to listen. One father tells me he’s afraid to listen for God’s voice because it will remind him he’s unworthy. That he’s not been faithful enough, not prayed enough, and not been a good enough parent. He knows God loves him, but he feels guilty about his failings.

A mother tells me she’s afraid of what God might ask her to do. Her family has a comfortable lifestyle. They have a nice home, plenty of food, lots of material things. She knows there are many of folks in need, and she fears God might ask her to give her nice life to help others.

Often we fear God will ask us to change. Maybe we don’t want to change, or we fear we are unable to change, so we just ignore the ringing when God phones. We pretend we’re not home. Or we think, I’m not ready to hear God now, I’ll pick up the message later.

Though we may be fearful and pre-occupied human beings, God is faithful. It is amazing when you think about it: God, constantly on the alert, never giving up on us. Perhaps every few seconds, asking “Can you hear me now?”

(Mary Farrell is a Spokane free-lance and children’s writer. Her latest book, Celebrating Faith: Year-Round Activities for Catholic Families, has been published by St. Anthony Messenger Press. Contact her at www. marycronkfarrell.com)

(Mary Cronk Farrell is a Spokane free-lance and children’s writer. Her latest book, Celebrating Faith: Year-Round Activities for Catholic Families, has been published by St. Anthony Messenger Press. Contact her at www.marycronkfarrell.com)