Mom came into the kitchen. "Oh," she said, "I ordered call waiting. Push the hang?up button and say hello."

Matt did so and was surprised to hear Dad's voice. "Let me talk with Mom, please," said Dad.

Mom took the phone and pressed the button again. "Pete, Matt will call you back in a minute," she said. Once more she pushed the button. Then she began talking with Dad.

When she was finished, Matt grinned. "Cool!" he exclaimed as he dialed Pete's number.

Matt was telling Pete a joke when he heard the beeping tone again. I'll get it after I finish this joke, he thought, but before he was through, the beeping stopped.

That evening, the phone rang again, and Mom answered it. She returned a few minutes later. "That was Grandpa," she told Matt. "He called this morning to see if you wanted to go fishing today. Since nobody answered, he assumed no one was home."

Dad looked surprised. "That's odd," he said. "You were home all day, weren't you? And since we have call waiting now, you should have gotten the call."

"I did hear a beep," admitted Matt. "I guess I waited too long before I answered it, and Grandpa hung up." He sighed. "I wish I could have gone with Grandpa."

"It's too bad you didn't answer his call," said Dad. Then he added, "You know, my Bible reading this morning had some verses about 'quenching the Spirit.' When God tries to get our attention, we need to be careful to listen and not ignore Him."

"He tries to get our attention? Like how?" asked Matt.

"Sometimes through pastors or Sunday school teachers or parents," said Dad. "Other times He may speak to us through verses we read in His Word -- or perhaps simply through the urging of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. If we don't respond, we miss a blessing."

Mom nodded. "It's always a shame to miss an important message," she added, "especially a message from God!"