The word "hello" was not a common greeting prior to the advent of the telephone. It was actually a hunting call used to establish contact with other hunters in the forest where the sound of one's voice did not carry very far. It was similar to the call "ahoy" used by seamen who had to call out to one another above the din of roaring waves. The reason a penetrating call such as this was employed for use over early telephones was due to the lack of clarity one experienced when originally using the technology.
Interestingly, where Thomas Edison suggested that "hello" be the standard greeting when using a telephone, Alexander Graham Bell championed "ahoy!" Modern communication has clearly been shaped by the winner of this contest. But there was a third option that carried forward in usage for some time even after the first telephones had gone into mainstream usage. It was a greeting from a bygone era when a "caller" was someone whom you did not know at your doorstep: "What is wanted?"
Functionally, the antiquated "what is wanted" served the same function as the modern "hello": the one answering the call desired to establish contact for further communication with the caller. The only disadvantage to this phrase, and probably the main reason for its never having been broadly adopted in early telephone usage, was that it did not pierce the static and the muffling of poor early telecommunications lines. No two people attempting to talk on a phone wanted to waste time saying "what?" repeatedly to one another if sufficient clarity could not be established. It was far easier for both parties to shout "hello" to one another once and settle the point up front.
Why all this prologue about telephone protocol on a scriptural devotional? Open communication with our Heavenly Father requires a similar approach if it is to be effective and enlightening. Though we may naturally consider prayer as our form of outreach toward God as though we were calling upon him, the omnipresence of his spirit actually means the roles are reversed: he is calling upon us at all times, and prayer is our opportunity to answer back!
"Listen! I am standing and knocking at your door. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and we will eat together" (Rev. 3:20, CEV).
Or to render it in terms of the telephone:
"Listen! I am holding my phone and dialing your number. If you hear my ringtone and answer the call, I will say 'hello' and we will have a rich conversation."
The moment we are ready to come to him, we find that he was there ready for us all along:
"Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there" (Ps. 139:7 – 8).
In fact, we find that God is not only already calling to us but, when we answer him through prayer, we find too that he already knows what we will say to him. Therefore Jesus pleads with us to not draw near to him with our lips if our hearts are far from him (see 2 Ne. 27:25):
"And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him" (Matt. 6:7 – 8, ESV).
What can we do then to not pray as the hypocrites and the Gentiles as Jesus warned? When we get down on our knees to answer his call, and after we say our "hello," let us listen for his "hello" that we might learn to have that 'rich conversation' with him. Remember, he is already on the other end.
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