By Kevin Howell
Prayer is a common practice among all religions and spiritual practices. I think most people — Christian or not, spiritual or not — have lobbed a prayer or two up to God at some point. Essentially, it’s our means of communication with the Creator. Most people have no problem talking to God.
The difficulty, and mystery, arises when it comes to hearing from God. We have a little trouble understanding prayer as a two-way communication vehicle. And even if we do embrace the concept, hearing from God still remains a little cryptic.
As Christians, hearing from God is supposed to be a normal practice. But aside from those who hear the audible voice of God — which is the minority, since most of us would have an accident in our pants if we ever did — most have to use some sixth sense of discernment, conviction, and/or confirmation to know God is communicating with us.
There have been times in my life when I’ve heard from God clearly, regularly, and confidently, and there have been times when the communication lines have been a bit murkier as I struggled to discern between my thoughts and His will. During these times, it’s important not to limit the ways you allow God to speak to you, nor to assume everything (and everyone) is God speaking.
I’ve always been someone who leaned toward the practical side of the supernatural. I don’t see everything as a “sign from God,” and I don’t know, nor care, about the spiritual significance of every number. But I have been open to whatever ways God would choose to talk to me. Well, until a few years ago. I was involved in a relationship where all “the signs” — both natural and spiritual — pointed to it being something that would last forever. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. And though my faith in God and His goodness never waned, I abandoned belief in “divine signs” as a practical means He would use to communicate to me.
But that started to change a few weeks ago. I was reading the account of John the Baptist’s birth in Luke 1. His father, Zacharias, was mute throughout his wife’s pregnancy. When the child was ready to be named before his circumcision, all his relatives assumed he would be named after his father, Zacharias. However, his mother, Elizabeth, said his name would be John. The family dismissed the notion, since no one in the family had that name. But Zacharias wrote on a tablet that his son’s name would be John, and immediately Zacharias was able to speak. Everyone was pretty amazed by this, and thought in their hearts, “Wow, there must be something special about this child. God has His hand in this.”
It’s pretty evident that the Jews were into signs from God, and He did speak to them that way. There’s no indication in the new covenant that God abandoned that tactic. If we’re open to hearing from Him that way, He’ll speak that way. Not too long after reading that scripture and reconsidering the significance of signs, I encountered a few signs that gave me some hope and direction. I may not have recognized them if I hadn’t opened my mind and heart to that means of communication again.
I don’t want to abandon the mysterious ways of God. I don’t want to cut off a means of His communication — that’s limiting God. And if there’s anything I don’t want to do, it’s limit God in my life. I need to hear from Him, desperately. Why would I turn a deaf ear, or better yet, a blind eye, to what He’s trying to say? The small, everyday coincidences may be something special. I may discover, like John the Baptist’s elders, that somehow, “God has His hand in this.”
Kevin is the founder and editor of Transparency Magazine. Connect with him on twitter @transparencymag.
AMEN!!!!