This spring I visited a small group of our church’s High School Junior girls. They had a bunch of questions and their leader was kind enough to think I might have some credibility with them.
They asked all the usual stuff about why bad things happen to good people, and gay marriage, and conflict, but at the very end, one of the girls said, “Why doesn’t God speak the way He used to in the Old Testament?”
I think what she really wanted to know was, “Is this bigger than big creator of the universe, also close? Does He still care about talking to little ol’ me, or does a person need to be Moses to hear from Him?”
I was able to reassure them with Scripture. Maybe God doesn’t sound like James Earl Jones, but how great is it that He continues to speak to us through the Holy Spirit?
“I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own sheep and my own sheep know me… They’ll also recognize my voice. John 14:14-16
The Father is sending a great Helper, the Holy Spirit, in My name to teach you everything and to remind you of all I have said to you. John 14:26 (the Voice)
But without a booming voice or a burning bush, how do I know a nudge is from God and not just my own delusion? There’s always the concern that we can rationalize anything, right? Here are a few charactreristics of Holy Spirit prompts that have helped me:
- It’s always consistent with love.
- It’s always consistent with God’s Word. The more time I spend getting to know the Lord, the more familiar His voice sounds.
- It’s often something I realize I wouldn’t have thought of on my own.
- It often stretches me a bit outside my comfort zone. It may be inconvenient or make me feel vulnerable because it requires that I trust God and not myself.
Here are a couple examples of hits and a miss from my life.
About a month ago I was driving home from an event and was reflecting on a word of affirmation someone had shared with me as I went out the door. This person didn’t know me personally and could be intimidated by me I think, but she had the courage to speak up and I was so grateful. I could have left it at that, but I sensed the Lord nudging me to write her and thank her for reaching out.
Also recently I had just been to the store to get groceries to make dinner for a new mama, when a tennis friend came to mind who has a knee injury. I sensed the Lord telling me she needed some encouragement too, so I turned the car around and went back for ingredients for soup. The text I received from her after she found the care package was confirmation this was from the Holy Spirit.
One Sunday I was doing the children’s sermon in all three services. It was the last service when I ran into a dear, 90-year-old friend who is newly widowed, sitting in the back by herself with 2 seats empty next to her. I gave her a big hug and greeting before I went up front to do my thing, vaguely thinking “someone should sit with her!” I did my part and then left immediately to drive home, not staying for the rest of the service. As I drove home I thought again “I should have said something to one of the ushers. Someone should have sat with her.”
And then I sensed God saying, “If YOU had paid attention, YOU could have sat with her!”
Honestly, I think this is one where I knew if I tuned into God’s whisper it would require inconvenience from me, and I didn’t want to hang around. Sometimes my selfishness puts God on mute.
That’s just a little of my experience. What about you? Is there a time when you’ve responded to a prompting from the Holy Spirit? What happened? Share in comments so we can encourage one another!
