As I look back over my life, I discover that it has been a process of growing into God.

No blinding lights, no booming voice, just a slow, sometimes steady, sometimes not, journey of faith. I read an account of a town that had been almost destroyed by a tornado. The only things that survived had two qualities, according to the reporter, deep roots and flexibility.

Two assets that can serve us well as we continue this process of growing into God.

The richness of our tradition, the wisdom of the ages, can serve us as we struggle to discern what God is calling each of us to do.

But we also need to be flexible, to be willing to move in directions we never thought available or appropriate.

"The word of the Lord was rare in those days."

Maybe the same could be said about today but if we want to be able to hear it, we must listen and most of us are so damn busy talking, too busy doing, we don't hear anything but ourselves.

Kierkegaard once said, "Prayer doesn't mean to listen to oneself speaking. Prayer involves becoming silent and being silent and waiting until God is heard."

If we want to hear from God, we'd better put ourselves in a position of listening. Sometimes that means being in the right place, sometimes that means being with the right people and sometimes that means just listening a little harder.