Transparent Christian Magazine

My wife Shelli and I have great respect for each other. We communicate well and have earned the right to speak truth to one another and typically say what is on our minds. Sometimes this open communication can be a bit shocking. A few years ago we had a conversation that went something like this:

Her: “Honey, I don’t want you to be alone with my friend Sarah” (Not her real name).

Me: “Why would you say that? She’s one of your best friends, and you know I would never do anything to jeopardize our marriage!!”

Her: “It’s not YOU that I don’t trust, it’s her. She’s going through a tough time right now, and God has been leaning on my spirit about this.”

Me: (Smiling) “Umm… I think you might be crazy. Sarah is our friend, married and I’m certainly not the kind of guy she’d be into anyway. Have you noticed that carloads of beautiful women haven’t been beating down our door lately to steal me away from you?!” (Snicker)

Her: (Giving me THE LOOK). “Jay, just be careful is all I am saying.”

A few weeks later, Sarah was over and asked me to help her practice a new praise song she was working on. I grabbed my guitar and we sat in the living room with Shelli, and went through it a few times. She sang well, and seemed to have the part down. Shelli got up to make some lunch, and Sarah leaned in close and said in a whisper “Do you feel something… well, magical between us when you play, and I sing? Because I sure do!”

I paused, and just like the end of The Sixth Sense, when Bruce Willis’s character realizes he’s dead, I reflected back (frame by frame) to that ‘crazy conversation’ that I had with Shelli, and I immediately knew my wife was right to be concerned.

I said “ummm… no not really. Heh. Let’s go through the bridge again”. Shelli walked back in, and my anxiety lightened a bit.

There can be an almost spiritual connection that takes place when you play music with others. You will often hear band members from all genres talking about their love for each other. In this case Sarah and I didn’t have any musical history together, and she had WAITED until Shelli was out of earshot, and spoke in hushed tones. This confirmed for me that this wasn’t just an innocent comment.

After Sarah left, I told Shelli what happened and apologized for not taking her more seriously. (Shortly after that, Sarah split with her husband, and had several boyfriends in quick succession.)

I have learned to trust my wife’s intuition and discernment, and I when she tells me God has been leaning on her spirit, you BET I listen. My prayer for you is that you will pay attention to the people around you that are following God. They may get an important message for you.

What have you been hearing lately?

Jason