God Speaks

Focal Verse: "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12).

My heart has had a yearning for ministry for as long as I can remember. I vividly recall an experience when I was at a church camp, where I excitedly told my camp counselor - who had also led me to Christ a few years before - that I wanted to "save people." She quickly pointed out the err of my words of choice, but my excitement was obvious. That desire has never left me, and I always felt that God would bring me into ministry in his time and in his way.

That desire has not only been stirred in past months, but it has turned into a passion that at times I can barely contain. As I have been praying and contemplating the possibilties - and the possible barriers - I realized that I have to get serious about listening to God's voice and the direction he has planned for me. So, I felt led to buy Priscilla Shirer's book Discerning the Voice of God. Although I have learned so many things that I've already applied to my prayer life, one chapter in particular spoke to me. It was about God using His word to speak to us.

In this day in age, I don't think we expect to hear God speak. Perhaps that's why he doesn't - or perhaps why we don't hear when he does. And although God speaks in different ways - through prayer, Bible study, circumstances, other believers, etc., I lean toward believing that his Word is his preferred method. Why? Because, even in prayer, sometimes it can be hard to distinguish God's voice from our own thoughts. Circumstances don't always point the way we think they do (I learned that first-hand this year but that's for another blog). And believers can give wrong advice (remember Job's friends?). In these methods, what we think we heard from God must be tested against His inerrant Word.

So how are we supposed to hear God speak through his Word - or test what we think we heard from God with his Word - if we don't know his Word?

Today my mom and I were at lunch and started talking about this. She is a children's leader in our church as she has been since I was a little girl. I was talking about how thankful I am that I grew up with Scripture memory as part of our church lessons. Every Wednesday at GA's we would learn a new Scripture. In Acteens we were expected to memorize Scripture verses and passages. In Bible Drill we memorized the books of the Bible and learned how to locate them. Most of the Scriptures I have memorized today came from my youth. I am so thankful that I had leaders in my home church who cared enough to teach and require Scripture memory.

Priscilla Shirer writes, "When a Scripture comes to mind 'out of nowhere,' that speaks to the specific problem I'm facing, I'm learning not to dismiss it as mere coincidence. Instead, I trust that the Holy Spirit is at work in me to reveal more about God and what my actions should be" (Discerning the Voice of God, p. 68).

When I was having trouble at work with my boss and some of his actions, I grew very frustrated. Then God brought to mind Colossians 3:23: "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men."

It is an amazing thing when God uses his Word to speak to us in our individual circumstance. But we need to know his Word before God can bring it up in our mind.

Scripture memory can be just like it sounds: going over a verse again and again until it's etched on your heart. This is easier than you think. I put verses on my bathroom mirror and practice them in the morning.

But knowing Scripture can also mean just spending time reading God's Word. God has brought passages to my mind that I may not have specifically memorized, but I knew enough about the idea of the Scripture that I knew what he was saying. And, thanks to the Internet, if I can recall a phrase, I can type it into http://www.biblegateway.com/ and easily locate the passage.

If I have learned anything in seeking God's voice, it's that God WANTS to speak to us! He wants to blow our socks off with those "Wow! He spoke to ME" moments. Sometimes we wish we could be in the Old Testament when God spoke audibly or appeared in signs like the burning bush, but we have to remember that God only spoke to prophets and certain people. Now God's Holy Spirit indwells every believer, and if we will listen, he wants to speak to each and every one of us. And the first place to start is in the Scripture he provided for us.