I, and six other sisters from church, started a Bible study
just three short weeks ago and it has already blessed me more that I could
imagine. We are using a book by
Priscilla Shirer titled “Discerning the Voice of God.” Could there be a more perfect study for me
right now?
The other day as I was listening to an audio CD on my way to
work, an interesting question was put forth: What language does God speak? My first thought was English. The author said he asked the questions to
Jews in Jerusalem and they all emphatically answered, “Hebrew.” But then you have to go back to the question
and more carefully examine one part of it – the word “language.” At its most basic, language is simply a
communication system. That includes
verbal words and all the non-verbals such as body language, use of time, and
facial expressions to name just a few.
But God is outside of that system.
He has ways of communicating to us that aren’t bound by those
parameters. He can put an idea or
thought in our heads, He can give us a sense of the need to do something, He
can prompt a scripture in our minds, He can give us visions, and so much
more. So, as I learn to discern God’s
voice, I find myself reflecting often on previous times when I have heard Him
speak to me.
On Sunday, Feb. 27, 2000, a young friend of mine ran away
from her home in New York. I knew she
did it with the intent of either killing herself or putting herself in a
position to where harm would come to her. I was so scared for her that that whole week I
prayed more and "harder" than I ever have. Just about every waking thought was about her
in prayer. She was gone all week without
a word from her. On Friday afternoon
(Mar. 4) the kids and I were driving to Austin for a weekend stay with my
parents. The kids had both fallen asleep
and I was listening to a worship CD and praying for her. Suddenly, as I was driving, I felt a wave of
tingles go through my entire body. It
started at the top of my head and went all the way down to my toes. I remember it caught me so off guard that I
thought "What on earth was that!!??"
After that initial thought, I realized that I felt totally at peace
about Jessica. I knew without a doubt
that she was now OK. As bizarre as it sounds,
I even tried to worry about her and I couldn't. Such peace I felt! I knew then that the Holy Spirit had given me two
gifts: one of a physical sensation that is unlike any other I have ever felt,
and one of peace to let me know that He had taken care of Jessica.
I spent the weekend with my parents and had a wonderful time with the assurance
I felt. We came home Sunday. That night, I got a message from her that said
she was OK and that Friday afternoon she had gone to the police to get help. I asked her exactly what time she went there
and it was the same time I had that feeling! God had answered my prayers and let me know
that He had.Tuesday, I went up to the church building to talk to our
preacher, Steve, about this. Frankly, I
was a little freaked out. I popped into
his office unannounced as I usually do. I sat down and told him my experience from the
last Friday. I was half afraid that he
would sit there and say, "Wellll, I dunno....." or something of that
nature that said "you are crazy." But he didn't. After I finished the story, he grabbed a sheet
of paper off the top of the pile of papers on his desk and said, "Read
this, I was just looking at it before you came in." It was a copy of a newspaper article about a
man who had a grandson in critical condition in the hospital. He told of how he prayed all night long for his
grandson's healing and that very early in the morning, he felt a "wave of
peacefulness" come over him and he knew his grandson would be healed. Sure enough, come morning the boy was awake
and doing much better to the amazement of the doctors!
Steve said something to the effect of "that is what you had....a wave of
peacefulness." And it was. It was not a coincidence or a fluke that I
felt those tingles. It was not a
coincidence that after I felt them, I was at peace. It was not a coincidence that I felt that
"wave" at the same time that Jessica had gotten help. It was not a coincidence that when I dropped
into Steve's office unannounced that he had just been reading that
article. God is in control.
So, in returning to my original question, “What language
does God speak?” Whatever language that
He deems you can hear. He speaks to us
in His language and in such a way that we will hear Him and know Him. Our job is to listen and then obey.
“My sheep listen to
my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”
~ John 10:27
No comments:
Post a Comment