GOD, IS THAT YOU?

If you read the end of my blog last week you might have thought I was preparing to give you a foolproof recipe for hearing God's voice. I've seen some of those on the internet and I'm not buying any of them, so I'm not going down that road. I believe God speaks to each individual a bit differently, so the best I can do is share some principles I've learned for myself, in the hope they will be of help to you.

How do you learn to recognize someone's voice?  You communicate with them.  The more you hear them speak the easier it is for you to identify them, even pick them out in a crowd where there are lots of competing voices and noises. It's the same with God's voice.  The more we hear Him speak the easier it is to recognize when He's speaking to us.

There is no question that God wants to speak to us.  He does that through the Holy Spirit. Jesus told us that in John 16:13.  

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth.

He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and 

he will tell you what is yet to come.

Since the Holy Spirit dwells within us as believers, His voice is going to come from inside.  If we let Him, He will talk to us by invading our thoughts and our emotions. The challenge of course is determining which voice is the Holy Spirit and which is just my own thoughts and ideas and feelings.  That's where we usually struggle, distinguishing God's voice from our own.

As I said, the best I can do is share a few things I've learned for myself, so here goes.

1. When God has something to say to me He speaks persistently and regularly until I get the message. Often it bounces around in my subconscious for a while and I'm not really even aware of it, until one day I realize this is something that has been on my mind for some time. Though I'm sure in emergency situations that demand an immediate response, some have heard God's voice suddenly and clearly. For me, under normal circumstances, some fleeting thought that never recurs is far more likely to be my own mind at work.  I tend to take some time to be sure who is really speaking.

2. Jesus said "my sheep listen to my voice".  My experience has been that God always speaks to me in a very similar way.  It may be different from the way He speaks to others, but for me it is always the same.  Over time I have come to recognize when God is trying to get my attention, because it has the same feel as the other times when He has spoken to me.  The more we listen to God's voice the easier it becomes.

3. God speaks to us more when we are obedient.  Imagine this scenario.  Every time I come to a decision point I ask for God's direction.  I get a clear sense that God is moving me toward a particular choice, but it's not the one I like, so I just go ahead with what I really wanted anyway.  Do you suppose God may reach a point of saying, "why should I speak to you when you refuse to listen?"

4. Will God sometimes give you a word for someone else?  I think it's relatively rare, but I acknowledge that it does happen.  A couple cautions about that.  First, be very careful and take the time to be sure it is really God speaking, and not just your own idea of something you think that person should know.  Then, be very careful how you present it.  Something like "God told me to tell you this." may not go over well.  How about this approach.  "As I was praying God seemed to be telling me something that may be helpful to you.  Would you ask God about this and see if He confirms it in your heart as well?"

5. When it comes to life-changing decisions, it may be wise to seek the wisdom and guidance of others who hear from God.  When God called me to leave my employment and go into children's ministry, it was the most momentous and scariest decision Louise and I ever made.  We asked several couples, friends who we trusted and who knew us well, to our home.  We shared what was on our hearts and we prayed together.  I asked them to share what they felt God was saying to them about this.  When God speaks to me, it is ultimately my decision to decide what I'm going to do about it, but I do believe if our heart and intention is right God will use spiritually mature people to help us in the process and to confirm what He is saying.

God wants to guide us, help us, and call us.  He doesn't very often do it audibly, but we can learn over time to be more confident in recognizing when He is speaking to us.  I would be happy to carry on this dialogue if anyone has any comments or questions.