When God Speaks

How often does God speak to you? Well, if you read the Bible, He speaks to you every time you open it. It is not called "the Word of God" for nothing! But other than the written Word of God, how does God speak to you? I was reading a post by DeNiece on her "cozy corner" and she mentioned what God had spoke to her that morning during her time with Him. (By the way, I will be showing pics of my own cozy corners through out this post....I have 3) Her post sparked something in my spirit that had me wondering how many of God's children actually "hear" His Voice? We know the Bible is the MAIN Voice of God. Let's be CLEAR about that. Any other avenue used by God to speak to you MUST line up with God's Word, or it is NOT the voice of God. That is KEY! Yes, I am raising my voice here.....God will not speak contrary to His Word.....EVER! Ok, I will calm down now.Also, I want to clarify, I am not an expert on this subject, so I am not claiming to "know all" here....I am going to just talk about my own personal experience with God's Voice. I have notebooks FILLED with my time with my Father. There are a handful of times that stand out, and they were life changing. One is when He gave me Charlotte's name 4 years before she was born....you can read about it in Charlotte's Story. Another time was many years ago. I was in the garage, smoking a cigarette....yes, smoking a cigarette (I gave that up years ago, Praise God)...and I was crying out to God. I mean REALLY crying...it went something like this....

"Lord, why, oh why, is my husband not what I need him to be??? WHY, Lord can't he be like "insert friends name" husband??? He prays with their family and he sends her flowers on every anniversary and he honors her with his love!! WHY, God, can't my husband be that way....change him Lord, to be that Godly man!!"

OK, so I know now that is pitiful. What did God say to me??? He raised His Voice to me the first time ever. YES, He did!!! He said,

"I DID NOT GIVE YOUR HUSBAND TO YOU TO MEET YOUR NEEDS. I GAVE YOU TO YOUR HUSBAND TO MEET HIS NEEDS. WHEN YOU BEGIN TO MEET HIS NEEDS THEN I, YOUR GOD, WILL MEET YOUR NEEDS!!"

Dead silence........

It changed my life. Yes, God met my needs and most of them He met through my husband, just as I asked. Also, did you notice, God did not speak to me in Old English? No, He speaks to you in your own language, yet He has His own style that you will learn to recognize.

I hear the Voice of God. Am I a prophet? No. I am God's child and He desires a relationship with His children. How many times have we went into our time with God and poured out our praise, repentance, supplication, and thanksgiving and when we were done, walked away? God desires us to come to Him and pray....we all know that, but He desires not only for us to have our time with Him, but His time with us! That is relationship....He says in Revelation 3:20,

"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."

....do you sit at a table with a friend and talk and talk and talk and then get up and leave? No. You listen to what the other person has to say also.

So what avenues does God use to speak to us? He uses His Word, we know that. He will also use other authors....books and tapes, speakers, Pastor's, friends, and family....even nature will be used by God to speak to us. All those things are signs of His incredible desire to communicate with us!

Another, and the most intimate way God speaks to us, is directly into our spirit. I hear His Voice. He says in His Word that His children know His Voice.

" My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:" John 10:27

Here is a challenge....grab a notebook and when you have your prayer time....make it in a quiet "cozy corner"....do not get up and go about your day after you pray. Sit still, and silent. Tell God you are ready to receive His Voice. It may be a simple "I love you" that you hear in your spirit. It may be 2-3 pages worth of conversation from your Father. I promise you will hear from Him. Are there times when God is silent? Yes. If He is silent for too long, you need to search your heart and life for a hindrance to that communication....unconfessed sin?....unforgiveness?...pride??? If you do not know, ask God to show it to you and when He does, don't get upset with the way He shows you. At first, you may have to be silent for a while. It is ok....He is there. Will you doubt what you "heard". I am certain you will. I did and sometimes still do. That is ok too. If it does not line up with the Word of God, cast it down as an imagination....2 Corinthians 10:5 says,

"Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;"

Use that verse when you are listening for the Voice of God. Will you have a burning bush experience? I will not say never! It is an incredible relationship when you have 2 way communication with God.

I mentioned before that God will use books to speak to us. One book that is so precious to me is "Come Away My Beloved" by Frances Roberts. It is one of 7 in a series and is filled with almost 200 pages of God's Voice. Here is an excerpt...

"O My Beloved, abide under the shelter of the lattice---for I have betrothed you unto Myself, and though you are sometimes indifferent toward Me, My love for you is at all times a flame of fire. My ardor never cools. My longing for your love and affection is deep and constant. Tarry not for an opportunity to have more time alone with Me. Take it, though you leave the tasks at hand. Nothing will suffer. Things are of less importance than you think. Our time together is like a garden full of flowers, whereas the time you give to things is as a field of stubble."

Wow. Did that "speak" to you? It did to me!!! It makes me want more....you too? Go grab your Bible and notebook, find a cozy corner and let me know what you hear!!!

Be Blessed,

Bren