Alarming

Visiting a friend recently,  she mentioned that their apartment building has a silent smoke alarm. Apparently, they don’t want to upset the tenants. Excuse me?  Isn’t the point of an alarm, to alarm you?  Or, at least, startle you?  She went on to tell me that one evening there was a gentle knock on their door. It was the security guard for the building inquiring to see if they had a fire.  That’s odd, I thought.  If there was a fire, is a gentle knock the best approach?  What if they were incapacitated and couldn’t get to the door?  Would the security guard have just walked away?  Thankfully my friend was able to answer the door.  She was embarrassed, but relieved, to discover it was merely her “high spirited” cooking that had triggered the alarm.   

Laughing about it later, it occurred to me that as followers of Christ, we also have a silent alarm system of sorts. That is, the Holy Spirit.  The Bible describes Him as our Counselor, our Comforter, and our Guide.   He convicts us of wrongdoing. Not to condemn, for we know there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1)  Rather, He desires to protect, direct, and to guide us to repentance.  He may tug on our heart with that still small Voice that says “Hey, you need to change course”, “You probably shouldn’t go there”; or, “That’s not a good idea, there’s no wisdom in that”.  

The Holy Spirit knocks gently, but persistently, and He doesn’t walk away, even if we are slow to respond.  We have His promise that He will never leave us or forsake us. (Deuteronomy 31:8) 

Of course, we can ignore the gentle knock.  We can wait until we are choking on the smoke of our own folly and hear the sirens blaring, but why wait?

“For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture, And the sheep of His hand. Today, if you will hear His voice:  “Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion, as in the day of trial in the wilderness.” 

Psalm 95:7-9 NKJV    

Oh Lord, help us to hear Your Voice and follow.  Baaaaaaa!