From Above!
An Online Ministry for the Men of CLF
When we venture into the world to earn a living, we all face our own unique set of challenges. As you can see, my office has a great view! But some days are more challenging than others. Long days away from home, weekly hotel stays, continuous jetlag and stress are some of the challenges we face in the travel industry. As men, sometimes our life is not aligning with our testimony...what people see on the outside is far from the feelings and emotions we are experiencing on the inside...
Friday, March 02, 2007
Guidance Part 1
The air traffic control system, or ATC, is responsible for the safe movement of aircraft on the ground and in the air. Their commands and directives are highly regarded as the consequences of ignoring there directions would surely be disastrous. Psalm 48:14 says " He will be our guide even to the end." What a promise! In the physical world we have people who help us by sight and by radar to protect us from harm...to keep us from going the wrong direction. We trust these imperfect people with our lives, yet God, who has created us and our earthly home, promises to guide us and give direction to our lives. Yet, how often do we access this Divine help?
How come when someone speaks to God we say " They're praying," but when they claim that God speaks to them we say "They're flaky?". Has God suddenly stopped speaking to His children? Would you stop speaking to yours?
Certainly the most obvious guidance is His word. Yet, in addition to His word, John Calvin described God's guidance as "the inner testimony of the Holy Spirit". Saint Ignatius called it "movements of the soul... thoughts, feelings,or desires...given to us by God." We live by sensory information gathered by our five senses...but God uses those and other internal influences that we learn to understand in the same way a newborn learns to use the external five. These may come as conviction of sin, an assurance of God's love, or the call to do a certain thing. But they're a must for the Spirit-guided life.
To hear from God you must be receptive. And sometime desperate! During a rough time in Jacob's life God appeared to him in a dream, saying, " I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go". When he awoke the next morning he said, " Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it". Most of us are here with Jacob...we don't know when He has spoken. These words written here in this text guide your thoughts...they lead your mind to a set of thoughts and conclusions...is God less capable of directing our minds by His own internal "soulish" means?
Samuel learned to hear God speaking to him. So real was the voice in his heart that he got out of bed to ask Eli what he wanted...yet Eli heard no voice! So eventually, Eli recognized God was speaking and confirmed to Samuel he was in fact hearing from God, and his life was forever changed. Will God speak to us, His children, in His own God-like way if we want hear?
Absolutely!
Let's listen up and learn to hear our Heavenly Father!
Keep on!
How come when someone speaks to God we say " They're praying," but when they claim that God speaks to them we say "They're flaky?". Has God suddenly stopped speaking to His children? Would you stop speaking to yours?
Certainly the most obvious guidance is His word. Yet, in addition to His word, John Calvin described God's guidance as "the inner testimony of the Holy Spirit". Saint Ignatius called it "movements of the soul... thoughts, feelings,or desires...given to us by God." We live by sensory information gathered by our five senses...but God uses those and other internal influences that we learn to understand in the same way a newborn learns to use the external five. These may come as conviction of sin, an assurance of God's love, or the call to do a certain thing. But they're a must for the Spirit-guided life.
To hear from God you must be receptive. And sometime desperate! During a rough time in Jacob's life God appeared to him in a dream, saying, " I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go". When he awoke the next morning he said, " Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it". Most of us are here with Jacob...we don't know when He has spoken. These words written here in this text guide your thoughts...they lead your mind to a set of thoughts and conclusions...is God less capable of directing our minds by His own internal "soulish" means?
Samuel learned to hear God speaking to him. So real was the voice in his heart that he got out of bed to ask Eli what he wanted...yet Eli heard no voice! So eventually, Eli recognized God was speaking and confirmed to Samuel he was in fact hearing from God, and his life was forever changed. Will God speak to us, His children, in His own God-like way if we want hear?
Absolutely!
Let's listen up and learn to hear our Heavenly Father!
Keep on!
