Who's Talking?

God's voice agrees with God's Word.

Have you ever heard God speaking to you? These are just quick thoughts about a few of the routes that God uses to speak to people with some personal examples.

God can speak to you every time you open the Bible.  Those words are His words.  The Bible is inspired or "God breathed" and should dwell in us to keep us from sin, clean us up, correct us, instruct us, reprove us, complete us and make us ready for good works.

God can and does speak through preachers of His Word. For some reason God uses the foolishness of preaching to talk to people, and it's a powerful thing.  But make sure you bring your Bible, open it up, follow along and keep that preacher accountable to the Word. If God's Word is twisted, it is not His Word.  The Deceiver is skilled in getting just enough of God's Word in there to make it sound good.

God speaks through nature and reveals His amazing news! The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament sheweth His handiwork.  This world is a testament to the Creator leaving no one with the excuse, "I didn't think there was a God."  The reply to that is simply, "Then you weren't thinking."

God speaks through people...and not just Christians. A former pastor's wife of mine said, "all men are my teachers."  People are made in the image of God and though we are far fallen from His glory I think it is this godly template that makes all people worth saving.

God speaks through Christians.  I am especially glad for the commeradery of believers,  specifically the members of my church.  The local New Testament church is supposed to edify or build the believer up in faith.  I lived at home while going to Indiana University and was able to continue serving in my local church. It was the serving that carried me through those years. Working with second graders in Sunday school when some people (my mom included) said I should be sleeping kept me focused physically and spiritually. Sitting in a class full of college and career aged individuals left my mind wandering and inevitably I would fall into a pattern of self-pity (why isn't there anyone who gets me?) The One who "gets me" had a place for me with a bunch of seven-year-olds and He used them to talk to me. 

God speaks through music. Singing in choir was another way God encouraged and talked to me.  Learning new songs every week kept a fresh melody on my heart and in my mind.  There's a reason that we are told to speak to each other in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs and to sing and make melody in our hearts to the Lord. It's good to praise God and bless God because He is worthy, and it's good for us. It can set the heart aright quickly. When I would sing with the choir and congregation,  I felt as if the angels in Heaven were singing along in praise to the One who gives us a reason to sing. It was more special than I can explain. Sometimes I forget to sing. I forget to turn on some God honoring music and unfortunately miss out on the much needed encouragement and admonition.

God speaks through His Spirit, and this is my favorite. When God speaks to me it sounds different than the voice in my head.  That voice is uncertain, kind of "judging", and often sarcastic. But God's voice is calm and clear and kind.  He uses everyday things that I can understand and that I'm currently going through to teach me on my level.  He once used my eavesdropping on a conversation at a restaurant. I was hearing one friend counsel another how to handle a relationship. "Don't read his letters,  don't answer his phone calls, stop thinking about him." Apparently this guy was bad news for this girl but that's when God's Spirit said, "That's how you fall in love with me. Read my Word,  talk to me and think about me." He doesn't do it this way much. But the times He has have been sweet. He uses his other ways more often probably because I'm bad at putting myself in a place where I can hear His still small voice. 

Just remember to take the voice back to the Bible.  If it doesn't agree,  it's not God.