HEARING FROM GOD
I woke up one night with the picture in my
mind’s eye of a bat with big ears. Bats respond to vibrations much like we are
to respond to the vibrations from the Holy Spirit. These spiritual messages are
often in the realm of the unseen but we all have them. Those times when you
“just feel like” you should wear a certain shirt, talk to a certain person,
show up at a different time—these nudges happen to all of us, all the time.
Sometimes we wish they were more like Las Vegas moments, with the bells and
whistles to let us know “HEY YOU, THIS IS GOD!” Or like Jane’s sister said, “They
should be accompanied by a movie theme song to let us know this is a big deal.”
But most of the time the messages from the Lord are more like “a still small
voice” Elijah experienced in 1 Kings 19: 11-15:
“And, behold, the
Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in
pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the
wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake:
“And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was
not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.
“And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he
wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of
the cave. And, behold . . . the Lord said unto him . . . .”
I liked the way a friend, Adrienne, talked about being led by the Holy
Spirit. She said: “God is ever present. Being mindful of this by actively listening
for Him, is the key to walking by the Spirit. Even minor changes in schedule—if
we show a little humility—it keeps our connection with God strong. We may never
see the results of our obedience: like the car accident that doesn’t happen
because of our obedience to be elsewhere. We may wonder how to tell if we are
on the right track. The only way is to play it through and see what we get.
Rejoice in the victories and when it doesn’t go as well, ask God how to do
better.”
I think of soldiers, firefighters, undercover agents, 911 operators: they
are trained to listen to their hunches and respond quickly. People’s lives
depend on it.
God gives us Holy hunches. He can’t force us listen or to obey. But we can train
ourselves to get better at both, while at the same time, asking for His help.
In Luke 11:11 Jesus says if a child asks his father for bread, the father
won’t give him a stone. When we’re asking for a more spiritual walk, He’s not
going to give us a stone to trip over, but rather bread to nourish us and make
us stronger disciples.
Love, Carolyn
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