¹⁰ Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent a message to Jeroboam, king of Israel: “Amos is hatching a plot against you right here on your very doorstep! What he is saying is intolerable. ¹¹ He is saying, ‘Jeroboam will soon be killed, and the people of Israel will be sent away into exile.’”

¹² Then Amaziah sent orders to Amos: “Get out of here, you prophet! Go on back to the land of Judah, and earn your living by prophesying there! ¹³ Don’t bother us with your prophecies here in Bethel. This is the king’s sanctuary and the national place of worship!”

¹⁴ But Amos replied, “I’m not a professional prophet, and I was never trained to be one. I’m just a shepherd, and I take care of sycamore-fig trees. ¹⁵ But the Lord called me away from my flock and told me, ‘Go and prophesy to my people in Israel.’ ¹⁶ Now then, listen to this message from the Lord:

“You say,
‘Don’t prophesy against Israel.
    Stop preaching against my people.’
¹⁷ But this is what the Lord says:
‘Your wife will become a prostitute in this city,
    and your sons and daughters will be killed.
Your land will be divided up,
    and you yourself will die in a foreign land.
And the people of Israel will certainly become captives in exile,
    far from their homeland.’”

Amos 7:10-17

Dear God, how do I make sure I’m more Amos and not Amaziah? What was Amaziah’s path for discerning your voice? Or did he even have one. We know Amos was a legitimate prophet and Amaziah wasn’t. But we have the benefit of hindsight. How do we figure out if we are right or wrong in the moment?

I think about this thing the Southern Baptist Convention is considering this year regarding women as pastors. They’ve adopted an amendment that can be ratified at their annual convention in 2027 that will prohibit women from serving in a lot of areas. There are people on both sides of this debate, and both have compelling arguments. Personally, I don’t have to make an argument on this one way or another. I have my opinions, but I have the luxury of keeping my opinions on this to myself. Another one is the LGTBQ+ issue in the church. Many opinions on many sides. What to do?

What I appreciate is sensitivity to you in prayer, and I admire that my wife really has it. I have it sometimes, but not at the rich depths she does. She felt compelled to pray for my coworkers this morning, and then when she got home from her walk I told her about a situation that has come up with one of my employees overnight. That’s when you revealed to her why you had compelled her to pray. She would make a good Amos. Not that she prophesies, but she makes room to hear you.

Father, help me to make some room to hear you. I normally listen to things–podcasts, YouTube videos, music. I rarely allow for silence. That’s probably a mistake. It’s most assuredly a mistake. So help me to be comfortable in silence, to hear your voice in the stillness, and to know how to discern between your leadings and the corrupt desires of my own heart. I want to hear you. I want to know you deeply. I need to allow for more silence if I’m to accomplish that. And I do pray for my employee and also for the mother of a young man who died yesterday. My employee has a difficult path. Give them your peace. Help them to shed any pretense and simply be at peace in you and then share that peace with others. For the mother, please find her and comfort her. Guide her. Love her. Raise up people around her who will strongly support her. She mourns. Let her be comforted.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen