Affection

“I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live.” Psalm 116:1-2

Recently I was studying this chapter in the Psalms in order to teach it and I learned a whole bunch about affection and love - both in our relationship with God and with our spouse.

Like many of the Psalms, there is a portion of this Psalm that praises or gives glory to God. The overall tone of this particular Psalm is relatively unique in that there is a greater sense of affection in the wording and feeling of it. It starts out talking about loving the Lord rather than praising or giving glory. This affection goes both ways, too in that God inclines His ear to us. He leans in to hear us. He desires to hear from us, and He knows our voice. He created us, after all.

We know that God desires to hear from us because His word says it often. One example is this: "And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.” (1 John 5:14) He hears us - every one of us. 

Not only does God hear from us, He desires that we hear from Him as well. "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27) He tells us that we DO hear His voice, that He knows US and that as a result we will follow Him. He loves it when we listen to Him.
As I was teaching this particular lesson I was searching for a metaphor that I could use to help illustrate this example. Wouldn’t you know that I thought of the very first date that Erica and I went out to eat some dinner. We went to the restaurant around diner time and went home around closing time. All we did was talk to each other and listen to each other. It was a great time of getting to know one another. As the few years since then has passed, we replicate this often. Not the long dinners out, but the conversations. 

So, God’s desire and example to us is that He hears us so much so that He inclines His ear toward us AND that he desires for us to hear from Him. It's like a two-way conversation or as some would say, a relationship. Well, since God is Love and this is one of the ways He loves us, why not learn from it.

Our most cherished times are the time right after dinner, and right after kids bedtime when we have the chance to sit down and listen to one another. Sometimes we discuss our day, other times we get into deep conversations and on occasion we will laugh about the crazy antics of Nicole and Jonah. The point is that we set aside time to talk to one another. Our ears are inclined to one another and our affection for each other deepens. 

Our affection for Nicole is also growing as the content of our conversations deepen. We get to hear what is on her mind and find out how she thinks and what she dreams about. This is fun but at the same time it is affection-building. We crave learning more about her. She is even starting to want to call family members to have her own exclusive conversations with them. As we eavesdrop on her we are entertained and delighted to see her desire to increase her affection for her family by simply spending time talking and listening. 

The analogy was great for me. It reminded me of how Erica and I are able to deepen our bond to one another by simply setting aside time to talk and listen to one other. The same is true for Nicole. We slow down and set aside time to get to know her and create space for her to connect with family.

So, if this analogy was a great reminder of how we are able to depend our relationships here at home, what about if we applied it back to our relationship with God. Have I set aside intentional time to simply talk to God and let Him talk to me? In a conversation, not a list of requests and grievances. As I get to know Him better have I developed a deeper affection for Him? 

“I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live.” Psalm 116:1-2