Column by Jonathan Nagy
Recently, I had coffee with a priest friend. We were engaged in a prayerful discussion about how to hear the voice of God. I had mentioned to him that at different times of my day and night, lyrics from various hymns pop into my head. There never seems to be a rhyme or reason as to the song. For instance, one song that I had not heard or played in months randomly entered my thinking. He asked me to close my eyes and meditate on the random lyrics and what they may mean for me. I came to realize that God is speaking to me through music, a language that I understand and is meaningful to me. He then asked me to pay attention to that moving forward. Since then, whenever lyrics to a hymn or praise and worship song enter my head, I take a minute to stop, pray, and consider what God is telling me. This has brought peace to my life, because I now realize that God is speaking directly to me, but I first had to discover how He communicates. Now, instead of dreading having songs stuck in my head, I look forward to it, knowing that God is giving me direction and talking to me, His child.
This world is NOISY. At every turn, there is someone or something that demands our attention. The average American adult has over seven hours of screen time per day! Even worse, the average American teenager has nearly nine hours of daily screen time. All of the ads, videos, articles, influencers, and other various content can be harmful and distracting to what should be front and center. I know personally that there have been times when I have found myself endlessly scrolling or playing a mindless game, and a half hour or hour has passed! I’m always shocked by “where the time goes!” Often, I find myself regretful because of how I wasted that time doing something unimportant and allowing myself to be distracted. I also imagine how I should have spent my time instead.
Outside of the digital world, so many entities in our lives demand attention, including work, school, family, and more. We can quickly become consumed with everything that is in front of us, not focusing on how dealing with and accomplishing what is in front of us helps to achieve the real goal of living a good life and making it to Heaven.
As a child, I never fully understood why at breakfast my grandparents would spend so much time discussing what was for lunch, and then at lunch, they spent so much time discussing what would be for dinner. It wasn’t until I was much older, and long after my grandparents had passed, that I realized what was happening. My grandfather worked incredibly hard, even in retirement. His day was marked by the meals, and my grandmother lovingly prepared each one. They looked forward to those times, and even more so if my siblings or cousins were around for meals. It was a different age, but these meals existed without television or phones. It was food and discussion. And it was glorious. The noise of the outside world did not exist for those important mealtimes sitting around the simple table that my grandparents had in their kitchen. There are many days I long to spend one more lunch with them.
We live in a troubled world. Unnecessary violence is prevalent not only in our own country but all around the globe. The horrors that are illustrated are overwhelming, and we struggle to understand how individuals can resort to such barbaric behavior. We pray and cry out for God to hear us, but are we hearing Him?
In the Book of Samuel, young Samuel worked for aging Eli. In the middle of the night, God called to Samuel, but he mistakenly thought it was Eli calling him. I can imagine Eli’s frustration with Samuel waking him up several times during the night asking why he was calling for him. Eventually, Eli realized what was happening. He instructed Samuel, when he heard the voice again to respond, “Speak Lord, your servant is listening.” What God said to Samuel was not a message that he particularly wanted to hear. God told him that the sins of Eli’s family would prevent the family from redemption. Samuel reluctantly told Eli what God had told him only after Eli pressed him on the matter. Eli responded, “He is the Lord. Let Him do what is good in His eyes.”
When we are able to hear God speaking, sometimes, just like Samuel, we do not like what we hear. We pray to hear Him say that our own will be done, not pray “Thy will be done.” He challenges us to step out of our comfort zones and accept the tasks that He lays in front of us. Those tasks are to use our talents and gifts to fulfill His plan for us on earth. It is our free will to either pick up those crosses and follow Him, or ignore Him and risk the loss of eternal salvation.
Recently on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, I played and sang the Good Friday verses of the hymn “Glory in the Cross.” Like I mentioned earlier, music echoes in my ears, giving me a message. The words to the final two verses of the song are particularly touching:
Let us bring our burdens to the cross of Christ
who has known our sorrow and tears.
In the great compassion of the heart of Christ,
God has walked in our hopes and fears.
He was mocked and betrayed, deserted by friends,
and banished to die among thieves.
Let us kneel in homage at the cross of Christ
where we see God’s human face.
We behold the Maker of the sun and stars
as he hangs on the throne of grace.
As we share in his pain, his sorrow and shame,
our hearts will be tested in fire.
Jesus Christ was human, just like the rest of us. He knew pain, sorrow, mockery, and humiliation. He cried, hurt, and felt dejection. He knew He would die an excruciating death to fulfill His kingdom, and yet, He accepted that cross, for He knew its power. He knew that was not the end of His story, and neither are our sufferings the end of our story. His Cross is a victory, and every time we pray, we unite ourselves with His pain, for we know the glory that awaited Him and awaits us. As the lyrics go, our hearts are constantly tested in fire. God knows the pain and anguish in our hearts. He answers us, but are we truly listening?
There is a clear difference between hearing and listening. Hearing is a passive, involuntary sensory process in which we perceive sounds. It does not require any focus or attention. Listening, however, is an active, voluntary, and intentional process that involves making sense of the words and sounds heard, requiring attention which may evoke an emotional response. It is one thing to hear God’s call, but are we actually listening? As children, our parents may have said to us, “I know you are hearing me but you aren’t listening to me,” when giving direction or correction. I imagine that is the same reaction we often get from our Heavenly Father. We may hear Him in a noisy world, but are we truly listening to what He is saying to us?
Last spring, I did an activity with the junior high students at the annual Lenten retreat at Bishop Carroll. I had a full room of students make lots of noise. On one side of the room, I had a student turn away from the crowd with instructions to listen, in the midst of the chaos and distractions, for the words from their best friend. In the middle of the cacophony, I had their friend, in the gentlest of ways, say, “You are my best friend and I hope you have a good day.” The student listening immediately heard their best friend calling out to them. It was truly a heartwarming moment to see this all play out. When we are truly listening, we will hear the voice of God clear as day, and His message is one that should bring peace and comfort to our lives.
Finding the silence in the midst of the noise is a challenge. I’ve often written about the value in finding even a few minutes of silence in the midst of a busy day to pray and refocus. Sometimes, like with Samuel, God will speak to us while we sleep. It is in our most relaxed, most centered, most peaceful state that we will hear His voice among all of the others.
God speaks to everyone differently. As my priest friend helped me to see that God was speaking to me through music, He speaks to everyone in a way that they understand. Once you hear, listen, and comprehend that God is truly speaking directly to you, it is a voice that will stay with you, comfort you, and make you long to hear it over and over again.
Jesus’ first words to the apostles when He visited them in the upper room after His resurrection were, “Peace be with you.” He wants peace for us in our lives, and recognizing when it is His voice speaking to us is truly comforting.
As Saint Paul wrote in his Letter to the Philippians, chapter 4, verse 7, “…the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
May the peace of Christ guide your spirit, mind, and soul, as you journey through life. He is truly speaking to us, but what is He saying to you?
Jonathan Nagy, M.Ed., is the Principal of Bishop Carroll Catholic High School in Ebensburg and the Music Director at the Basilica of Saint Michael the Archangel in Loretto.
