by Kevin Burton
Wouldn’t you love to get an e-mail from God with a PowerPoint presentation attached? “Here’s my step-by-step plan for your life.”
And while I’m dreaming, let’s throw in a timeline. And contact info for those who will help, and an avoid list for people places and things to stay away from.
That will never happen. So how is it that we hear from God?
One of my favorite Paul Simon songs, “Slip Slidin’ Away,” contains a blatant lie:
“God only knows
God makes his plan
The information’s unavailable
To the mortal man”
Not true.
We know God wants to communicate with us. The Bible says, “Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split” (Matt. 27:51 KJV).
That veil was the separation between God and man made necessary by our sin. On the cross, Jesus paid the price for our sin, and that separation was eliminated. But don’t check your mailbox for greetings and direction from Him.
Instead, slow down and listen for the prompting of God’s Holy Spirit.
“The Lord is active in the world today and wants to share His peace, courage, and joy with you,” reads a message from in Touch Ministries, which was founded by the late Dr. Charles Stanley.
“If f you’ve never experienced the presence of God, you may wonder how He reveals Himself to believers. Our heavenly Father has many different ways of reaching out to His children:”
God speaks. We may not hear the Lord’s audible voice, but He still speaks clearly and forcefully to our heart. His communication can be so unmistakable that those who hear Him remember the message and the excitement they felt long after.
God sends a message. Sometimes the Lord communicates to us through another person. King David received God’s correction through the prophet Nathan (2 Sam. 12:1-7).
Today we may sense God guiding us in a sermon or in a conversation with a wise friend. It’s unwise to ignore such promptings—the message might be harder to receive outside of the Father’s perfect timing.
God makes His presence known through His Word. The Lord speaks to us through the pages of Scripture. When we spend time meditating on His Word, God keeps giving us new truths and insights (Ps. 1:2; Ps. 119:99).
“The Lord is real and present in this world. He wants to share Himself with us so we can draw contentment, courage, and joy from His presence,” reads the In Touch message. However, to know what He’s saying, we must be willing to slow down and listen.”
Ah!…listen!
If you’ve spent any time listening to Dr. Stanley on the radio, you will remember him imploring us to listen. He also said, “if you’re listening say ‘amen.’” We are so easily distracted. He knew that and wanted to make sure God’s message was getting through.
The Bible says, “Be still, and know that I am God” Psalm 46:10a).
My English teacher Mrs. Eplin used to tell us to “be still” when she wanted us to be quiet.
We would always say “I’m not moving!”
High humor from high school.
When the Psalmist says “be still” you may take it in both senses of the word: stop moving and be quiet.
You understand worship means “worth-ship.” When you slow down and listen for God’s voice, you declare that God and His leading is “worth,” more important than, the other elements of your life.
Hebrews 11: 6 (NKJV) reads, “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him (emphasis mine).
We think of diligence in terms of determined, methodical, systematic action. But in this case diligence is being quiet, listening for and listening to, God.
You’ve heard of due diligence? This is your spiritual due diligence.
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