Hearing The Hearing God Without Being Distracted By Him

Gen 16:11-14 (NASB)

11 The angel of the Lord said to her further,

“Behold, you are with child,
And you will bear a son;
And you shall call his name Ishmael,
Because the Lord has given heed to your affliction.
12 “He will be a wild donkey of a man,
His hand will be against everyone,
And everyone’s hand will be against him;
And he will live to the east of all his brothers.”
13 Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “ You are a God who sees”; for she said, “ Have I even remained alive here after seeing Him?” 14 Therefore the well was called Beer- lahai- roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.

God commands that the "wild donkey of a man" be called Ishmael, meaning "God hears". But Hagar (and everyone using the well) called God, the God Who sees. It's not like I have to choose which one is right, but this is somewhat like today: I choose for myself which truth of God I want today, rather than listen for His lesson.

Again, it's not that the truth I choose isn't truth, it's more that it's not the lesson my Master is teaching me about Himself right then. Ironically, here He calls Himself the Hearing God, but Hagar isn't listening. She's so distracted by having seen God and survived. Again, not wrong, just ironic.

How patient my Master is with me to teach me but permit me to walk away with a different lesson. What do I miss when I do that? I perceive Truth when I meet my Master, He is the Truth, the Way, and the Life. Yet when I come away with a different truth than the truth He has for me, what have I lost? Perhaps the good versus the best, or perfect?

The question, or application, or lesson is "Do I listen to the Listening God, or am I too distracted by another of His 'Truths' to hear the one He has for me today?" He is the Listening God, but am I His listening servant? It's good to be called His Knight and His servant; I am close to Him by invitation. But am I hearing what He says or distracted by what I see? I suppose once again it's a pride issue, and a submission issue. Why am I not through these yet?  Well, I suppose I have some quiet listening to do. I better get on it.

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