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Bulletin articles
Does God Hear?
A man used to grumble at the food his wife placed before him at every meal, then he would offer thanks. One day after his usual combination of complaint and prayer his young daughter asked, “Daddy, does God hear us when we pray?”
“Why, of course,” he replied, “He hears us every time we pray.”
“And does He hear everything we say the rest of the time?”
“Yes, every word,” he replied, proud that he had inspired his daughter to be curious about spiritual matters.
Innocently, she burst his bubble with her next question: “Then which does God believe?”
(author unknown, edited)
This simple, but humbling, story should remind us of several important Bible truths about our words —
Jesus said, “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12.33-37).
Further, James 3.8-12 warns that the human tongue “is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.”
The apostle Paul wrote, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2.14-15), and “in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (4.6).
Does God hear? Yes, He does, so watch your words!
- 20250316_Does_God_Hear.pdf (201.62 kB)
