Sawdust Listening

There is a story of a farmer that had an icehouse. During the winter he and his workers would cut ice blocks from the nearby pond and then place them on a bed of sawdust in the icehouse, covering the blocks with more sawdust. At one point the farmer noticed he lost his beloved pocket watch in all his work. He and his workers went in frantically raking through the sawdust, moving ice blocks to find the watch, but to no avail—it was not found. The farmer’s son, about age ten, heard of the situation. While the workers were out on another project, he slipped into the icehouse and after a little time he came out with the watch in hand giving it to his father. The father was so excited, he asked, “How did you find it?” The boy answered, “I laid down in the sawdust, laying there quietly. I just listened.”

What a beautiful example of purposeful positioning WITH expectation. King David penned. “In the morning, O LORD, You hear my voice; I lay my request before you and wait in expectation” (Psalm 5:3, NIV). David didn’t sit there filling the conversation. He leaned in, leaned forward in eagerness, expecting God’s response. He knew if he was quiet enough, patient and waited, like the little boy—he would hear Him.

How often do we too go looking for God, yet noisily, raking around, turning things over. Or we jet off into our day, not even waiting for a response, when indeed God wants us to hear Him. What would expectant positioning look like for us?  For you?

Maybe God is waiting for us like He was Moses. Exodus 3, Moses is out tending to the sheep when he sees a bush on fire. It wasn’t until Moses gave his full stop and attention, positioning himself at the bush that God spoke: “When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” (v 4) Moses doesn’t say anything. In his quiet, he takes his sandals off and listens.

For some of us, showing up is our first step. May we too be purposeful, attentive, full stop, eagerly waiting—quietly. 

Sawdust listening.

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)