Is God Speaking To You?

Let’s say a lumber company bought a forrest and hired you to do an inventory of the trees. Soon you have questions. What kinds of plants do they define as trees? How old should a seedling be before it’s counted as a tree? You refer to the employee handbook you were given, but some parts of it are hard to understand. You pick up your cell phone to call your boss, but you have no signal. You are isolated. You have no way to communicate with your boss. You are left to figure it out on your own.

As Christians, we’re given a handbook to get us through our lives. God gave us the Bible, and thankfully, God will never leave us isolated and alone.

How does God communicate with us? In the beginning, God spoke to man directly and through prophets, ultimately speaking to man through His Son, Jesus. He also spoke through man by creating Scripture. One of my favorite passages illustrates this beautifully.

“All Scripture is God-breathed, and usefull for teaching, reproofing, correction and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be well equipped for every good work”
(2 Timothy 3:16-17)

These forms of communication are referred to as Special Revelation. This is the theological term that describes the knowledge of God and spiritual matters as they were revealed to us by supernatural means.

Another form of communication is called General Revelation. General revelation refers to the knowledge of God and spiritual matters as they are revealed to us indirectly by observation of nature and human conscience. We see evidence of God in the perfection of the universe. One can see God’s hand in the detail of a small flower and the miracle of how huge trees grow from a single seed. Human conscience is man’s ability to reason right from wrong, and to feel emotions.

Romans 1:20 tells us “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – His eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

Psalm 19:1 says “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands”

General revelation is there for all of man to see. Everyone can see how a tree grows from a tiny seed. The primary purpose of Special Revelation and General Revelation is to lead man to Christ and to glorify God. But there’s another way that God speaks to us.

When God speaks to us today, He does so through the person of the Holy Spirit. It is very unlikely we would hear God speak to us today in audible form. Certainly He could if He chose to, but chances are far greater He will speak to us through what He has already revealed to us through Scripture and through the person of the Holy Spirit. I’d like to share an example of how I believe God recently spoke to me.

A few months ago I was praying about a sin issue that had me concerned. I didn’t want to fall prey to temptation and was asking God to help me to avoid the snare Satan lays out for us. One of the passages I was praying through was 1 Corinthians 10, verses 12 and 13:

“Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”

During a lunch break at work, I was walking though a small grove of eucalyptus trees nearby and enjoying the fresh air. As I was walking I happened to look down at my feet just as I was about to step on a small rattlesnake nestled in a patch of dry leaves. Now, as any of you who know me well might be aware, this wasn’t my first encounter with a rattler. While hiking a few years ago, I had a similar encounter to which I reacted in a way that would not be considered very manly. Let’s just say there might have been a little yelp emmitted that some have compared to that of a little girl’s squeal as I lept backwards away from the snake.

Suprisingly though, this encounter was different. I was startled to see the snake at my feet, but there was no fear. I felt calm. Rather than feel fear, I stood there (safely out of striking distance) and admired the beautiful coloring on it’s skin as the snake patiently waited for his lunch to wander by.

I believe that in that moment God was speaking to me. The message I took from that encounter was to not fear temptation because as stated in the passage from First Corinthians, there is no temptation that can overtake me that is not common to man. I felt reassured that God is faithful. He will never leave my side, and will always provide me with a way out.

The rattlesnake represented Satan lying in wait for me. The snake deserved my respect, and if I was careless and provoked it, I would most certainly have gotten bitten. But if I gave it a wide berth, and avoided the snake, I was safe. With God as my shield, Satan was powerless against me. I endured my encounter with the snake. God provided me with a safe way out.

Am I reading too much into this encounter? Maybe. Was God really speaking to me at that moment? I don’t know. But what I do know is that if I had not been praying to God about this matter, and if my heart and mind were not open to receive Him, this event would have been nothing more than a passing moment in my day.

I believe God guides and speaks to us more than we may realise. Buy sometimes you have to be still to hear Him. You have to allow Him to reveal Himself to you in the ways He chooses.

God will never leave us stranded without communication. He gave us an Employee Handbook of sorts when He breathed out His Word through Scripture. But having a Bible isn’t enough. We need that extra line of communication. We need to be in constant fellowship with Him and to be walking in the Spirit.

We can speak to Him any time we choose through prayer, and He will always hear us and He will always answer us. His answer isn’t always immediate, and sometimes it might require us to be still and observant to receive it. But through faith in Christ we know He is always there by our side to guide us back onto the narrow path.