I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind.

1 Samuel 2:35

The Lord has blessed my wife and I with three beautiful children, and all three are completely different. One loves all types of art and enjoys quiet solitude. Another is highly social and loves trying new foods. And yet another is very athletic and has the desire to always be on the go. Now, anyone can probably learn this about my children by simply observing them on a day to day basis. Watching their actions and interactions speaks volumes, but that doesn’t mean you would know them.

In order to know my children, a person would have to spend time with each individually. More importantly, that person would need to interact, speak, and listen to their words. Why? Well, God has created us uniquely in his image. No other creature can boast of this. From the very beginning, the LORD God communicated with Adam and vice versa, sharing information back and forth (Genesis 2) This may seem very natural to us because we communicate daily with others. However, we take for granted the importance of our ability to speak and listen to words.

My children know that I am passionate about following Jesus where ever he leads; that I want to travel the world sharing the gospel. I know that one of my daughters loves writing new songs. And another daughter wants to be a mom of multiple children, baking sweets for them. My son dreams of playing collegiate football. This knowledge of each other comes from our communication of what is in our hearts and minds.

If we look to the faithful high priest, Jesus Christ, we see that he came specifically to reveal the Father (John 17:26). He revealed him through words. Everywhere Jesus went, he preached the word. In fact, he said that he speaks what his Father has taught him (John 8:28). We can come to know the heart and mind of God our Father by spending time reading his word. Jesus did it, Samuel did it, and we can too. “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34). God is speaking from his heart, are you willing to listen?