Yesterday, my husband brought my attention to a fact I was not paying much attention to. Our little one recognizes my voice and nothing else gets his attention better than my voice at this time in his life. This reality made me feel special, it led to spiritual enlightenment and a brief research on babies and their mother’s voice.
Scientific Studies
During a study conducted by Stanford School of Medicine, MRI scan showed significant brain activities when children under 12 heard their mother’s voice in comparison with the voice of strangers. According to an article on the study, “Brain regions that respond more strongly to the mother’s voice extend beyond auditory areas to include those involved in emotion and reward processing, social functions, detection of what is personally relevant and face recognition.” (Digitale, 2016) This is wow! Mommas, you’ve got the power to empower your children and you can start while they are still young. This is exactly what @thedewdiary and @sbackues revealed to us in their recent posts.
In another study, newborns showed preference for their mother’s voice and recognized their father’s voice. Sounds like common sense but the depth of these studies is profound. They point to the importance of choosing our words carefully when communicating with our children. Parents/Guardians, your voice matters!
Spiritual Enlightenment
I felt very special once I realized how valuable my voice is to our little one. My face lit up for hours and I felt even more connected to the little one. While feeling special, I reflected on how God feels when we value His voice. I am not sure it is okay to say God feels special. He is God and He doesn’t need me to make Him feel special.
However, I believe God appreciates me valuing His voice and He is actually very proud of me each time I choose to obey His voice. Simply because God wants us to become Like Him (Genesis 1:26). Valuing God’s voice increases our ability to recognize His voice and daily become like the one who created us. God takes pleasure in those who honor Him (Psalm 147:11).
Obeying God’s word, choosing His voice and seeking to know what God is saying concerning ALL our plans (Proverbs 3:6) are some of the ways we can honor God. I have no doubt that doing these things is pleasurable/delightful to God.
I shared my thoughts and feelings with DH and he was quick to point out some verses in John 10:
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.
John 10 : 5, 27 (KJV)
Let us take time to reflect on the voices we are listening to and the words we are speaking into the lives of our children. Words matter!
When God wants to do something great in the world, He doesn’t send an army, He doesn’t send an earthquake, He sends a child and finds a mother He can trust – Jentezen Franklin
Stay Blessed.