all the time in the world.

People are always asking me how I know what the Lord is saying to me.  How does He speak to me? What does that look like?  How do I know it's Him?

Yesterday morning was just the perfect example.  Praise the Lord.

Monday mornings at our house (at EVERY house?) are crazy.  The girls are both braided and dressed and backpacked and fed and off to school by 7:10.  I get the baby up and fed, get showered and dressed, start the laundry, buy our milk for the week and start it pasteurizing and am off for class by 7:45.  I start teaching these 35 men and women at 8 am.

So it's crazy.  It's supposed to be crazy.  I expect it to be crazy.  I go to bed Sunday night waiting for CRAZY.

But yesterday, when I'm right in the middle of all that, gathering up my tests and books in the office to run to class, my mind ticking things off a mile a minute, His voice somehow broke through.

I know it's His voice when it sounds nothing like mine.  When it's not what I would be saying, not when I would be saying it, not how I would be saying it and not necessarily what I would be wanting to hear.  I know it is God's voice when it is consistent with the message of the Scripture.  When it is loud enough in my mind and heart to STOP my ever racing mind and heart.  When it brings heavy peace and redirects my thoughts and heart. 
And yesterday morning, as I sat for a quick 30 seconds before I dashed to pray for my girls, for our students, for my family, for my heart to be like His and for this upcoming week, He said, "You have all the time in the world that I have given you.  Slow. Down."

Tears unexpectedly jumped to my throat, as they always do when He speaks, and I stood released.

THAT is not what my mind was saying.  That was not peace I was able to give myself.

All day yesterday, I was surprised by joy as I obeyed.  His reminder came to me again and again, and I obeyed.

"Lord, how am I going to get everything done today if I slow down?!" I prayed, nearing frantic, several times throughout the day.

And each time He responded with His incredibly consistent question: Do you trust Me?

So I did.

As I conjugated irregular simple present verbs on the board with first year, I wrote slowly and deliberately, moving from subject to subject with deliberate pause, finishing class when we were finished, giving plenty of time for discussion and questions.

As I entered EBS expenses into QuickBooks, suddenly reminded that this week is payroll and month end (panic, panic), I trusted Him and slowed down, and prayed as I worked...for the people's names on the expense reports, for God to faithfully continue to provide needed funds for the Seminary.

I quickly found that praying as I went throughout my day made it 100 times easier to obey. (Another sign of His voice: doing what the Bible says to do greatly supports and helps you do what you heard). It's hard to be in a flap when you're praying!

Before I knew it, my day was significantly sweeter than the large majority of my days.  And I still got a lot done.  And I still did not get everything done.

But the continual reminder that my time was HIS time and to slow down made me present as I read to the girls, made cooking dinner actually therapeutic and peaceful (it's been like 5 years since that happened :), made writing thank-you notes truly a grateful experience, made me think of HIM in the middle of things far more often, gave me significantly more patience with my girls (they are GREAT at helping tasks move more slowly :), turned my nursing time back into the prayer time it had been at the beginning of Nora's life when things weren't quite so busy, turned my conversations into better ones, turned my shower into a true rest, focused me on 20 things I am so thankful for that I most-Mondays never would have even noticed ...  you get the picture.

His voice entirely changed my day.  

The other way I often hear His voice is through others...when they tell me EXACTLY what they didn't know I needed to hear, when what they are saying lines up with Scripture, when I find tears in my throat over what they are saying because it simplifies and brings peace.

Maybe today this is just a post, and that's fine.

But maybe today this is His voice for your life, too.  

Today you have exactly the perfect amount of time that He is graciously giving you.  Thank Him for the time and Slow. Down.  Do the things before you, enjoyable or not, deliberately and keep prayer close and continual.  Trust Him with your time, with your tasks, with your heart in the midst.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.  His love endures forever...and for today.