Six a.m. Serenade

I've had a handful of people ask me lately what I mean when I say, "God told me..." (fill in the blank).

The art of learning to hear God's voice is something I'm not entirely sure how to describe. Part of that is because I have to really think back to when I first started hearing Him, and then I have to try to think about the process I went through in comprehending that those things were His way of speaking to me. Part of my inability to express it is also because I don't think He speaks the same way to everyone. Things that grab my attention could be completely lost to you, just like I might not even notice something that knocks you off your feet.

But because this question has come up so much lately, I've tried to be even more aware of how I hear God speak, so I can give an answer when I'm asked.

For me, music is a big part of God's voice. I spend a lot of time listening to music (remember when I went through the 40 days of Lent with no music in my car? WHEW!) and as a result those words become a powerful speaker for God to me.

One of the most beautiful parts of this desert journey has been the implementation of the six a.m. serenade. Now y'all know I don't like mornings. And prior to my desert, God and I rarely (okay never) spoke before, oh....noon. But that has so changed. I cannot get out of bed without reading something...my devotional book or a passage of Scripture or a blog about God moving in someone else's life...and journaling. I'll risk being late to work before I'll skip that time now. And one of the reasons I must journal is because of the serenade.

Because I hate mornings so much, I can't bear to awaken to the BEEP BEEP BEEP of an alarm, so the radio is my wake up call. I have it tuned to a Christian station, and a few weeks ago, I noticed that the songs that awakened me each morning were perfect for that day. No matter what I felt when I woke up - the song spoke to it. My co-worker, Judy, started calling it my serenade. I loved that. You will never convince me that God's Hand hasn't been guiding the program director at WBCL.

My favorite day was June 12th. It was a Saturday - the same Saturday that God sent me that amazing object lesson of being held and rocked and learning to be still....and know that HE is God.

I awakened to a song by Josh Wilson, called "Before the Morning." I'd heard it during several other serenades, but that morning, the specific line playing when the alarm went off was this: The pain that you've been feeling is just the dark before the morning.

In typical Bekah-fashion, I hit snooze, and nine minutes later, I awakened to Mandisa singing "He is With You." Specifically the words blaring into my bedroom were, We may weep for a time but joy will come in the morning!

I thought to myself, "Didn't I just hear something kind of like that?" Thinking I was just tired, I hit snooze again. Nine minutes later, Fee sang these words from "Everything Falls" - Sorrow will last for the night, but hope is rising with the sun. It's rising with the sun. There will be storms in this life, but I know you will overcome. You have overcome.

And that's when I knew for sure it was God. When the same general line came in three consecutive snoozes, that wasn't anything but God.

Oh Jesus...bring the morning.






~ For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. ~ Psalm 30:5