Start Your New Life Today (5 page)
Truth is often harsh; it shocks us into a reality we may feel unprepared to see, but if God is revealing it He knows the time is right.
I strongly urge you to be willing to face truth because there is no freedom without it. The world is filled with deception and the Bible actually teaches us that it will get worse as time goes by. God said that if He did not shorten the days for the sake of the very elect, no man could stand the deception coming to the earth. It is very common today for someone to call evil good and good evil. We must not look to the world to teach us how to live sincere, truthful lives, but rather to the Word of God and the Holy Spirit.
Let our lives lovingly express truth [in all things, speaking truly, dealing truly, living truly]. Enfolded in love, let us grow up in every way
and
in all things into Him Who is the Head, [even] Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) (Ephesians 4:15).
Learn to Hear from God
L
earning to hear from God and being led by the Holy Spirit is very exciting. God wants to speak to us about the plan He has for our lives. His plan is a good plan, but we are in danger of missing it if we don’t learn how to listen to and obey God’s voice.
We talk to our children all the time—why wouldn’t our heavenly Father talk to His children? We would not expect our children to know what we wanted them to do if we did not talk to them, so why would God feel any different?
We would not expect our children to know what we wanted them to do if we did not talk to them, so why would God feel any different?
God speaks to us in many ways. He speaks to us through His Holy Spirit dwelling in us, through that “knowing” deep inside us, and through peace. He may also speak through nature, other people, circumstances, wisdom, supernatural intervention, dreams, and visions.
God also speaks through our conscience, our desires, and an audible voice. However, the two most prevalent ways God speaks to us are through His Word and the inward witness in our hearts. Hearing the audible voice of God is rare for most people and nonexistent for many. I have heard the audible voice of God three or four times in my life. Two of those times were at night when I was awakened by His voice simply calling my name. All I heard was, “Joyce,” but I knew it was God calling me. He did not say what He wanted, but I knew instinctively it had something to do with a ministry call on my life, although clarity did not come in that area for several more years.
I heard the audible voice of God in February 1976, a very significant year for me, the day I was filled with the Holy Spirit. That morning, I cried out to God about how awful life was, and I told Him something was missing in my relationship with Him. I felt I was at the end of my rope.
His voice seemed to fill my entire car, and He simply said, “Joyce, I have been teaching you patience.” Since that was my first time to hear anything of that magnitude, it both thrilled and shocked me. I instinctively knew what He meant. I had asked God several months prior to that time to teach me patience, not realizing the lesson would include a lengthy period of feeling my life was on hold. The frustration of that feeling peaked that morning in February when I cried out to God in desperation asking Him to do something and give me whatever it was I was missing.
When I heard God’s voice, I was suddenly filled with faith that He was going to do something wonderful in my life, although I did not know what it would be; I spent the day in expectation and thanksgiving. That evening in my car, while returning home from my job, God’s Spirit touched me in a special way and filled me with His Presence. This event was the beginning of a new level in my relationship with God.
Ask God to help you learn how to listen to Him, to be sensitive to His voice. He wants to talk to you, to develop a closer relationship with you. It is your privilege and right as a born-again believer in Jesus Christ to fellowship daily with God the Father, Jesus Christ His Son, and the Holy Spirit. Learn to talk to God about absolutely everything. God is interested in everything that concerns you.
The Life of God Is Inside Us
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he Holy Spirit acts somewhat like a traffic policeman inside me. When I do the right things, I get a “green light” from Him, and when I do wrong things, I get a “red light.” If I am about to get myself in trouble, but I have not fully made a decision to proceed, I get a “caution signal.”
The more we stop and ask God for directions, the more sensitive we become to the signals within from the Holy Spirit. He doesn’t scream and yell at us; He simply whispers in the still, small voice and lets us know we are about to make a mistake. Each time we listen and obey, it becomes easier to hear Him the next time. He will always lead us to newness of life and inner peace, if we yield to Him.
As believers, we have the life of God inside us.
We are the dwelling place or home of God.
I believe this truth is necessary for each of us to understand in order to enjoy close fellowship and intimacy with God.
Why would God want to live in us? And how can He? After all, He is holy, and we are weak humans with frailties, faults, and failures. We are to simply believe that Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins was enough to allow us into the presence of God. God takes up residence within us when we give our lives to Jesus by believing in Him as the only Savior and Lord. From that position He, by the power of the Holy Spirit, begins a wonderful work in us. This truth is so awesome that it is difficult for our finite minds to grasp and believe.
The answer is this: He loves us and chooses to make His home in us. He does that because He is God—He has the ability to do what He wants, and He chooses to make His home in our hearts. This choice is based not on any good deeds we have done or ever could do, but solely on the grace (or power), mercy, and love of God. As believers in Christ, we become God’s dwelling place (see Ephesians 3:17; 2 Timothy 1:14; 1 John 4:15).
God wants to be involved in even the smallest details of our lives.
Also difficult for our finite minds to grasp and believe is that God wants to be involved in even the smallest details of our lives. Don’t ever hesitate to take what you think are small things to God. After all,
everything
is small to God. Sometimes we act as if we will tax God’s ability if we ask Him for too much help. I remember a woman who came to me for prayer and wanted to know if it would be all right if she asked God for two things. If not, she assured me that she would only ask for one. It always makes me sad when I hear people say things like that. I want everyone to know how generous God is and that He wants to give even more than we know how to ask for. You have not because you ask not (see James 4:2), so go ahead and ask boldly because it is God’s will that you do so.
It is vital to know what God’s Word says about His role in your life, because it confirms His divine plan to be intimately involved with all that concerns you. God’s Word says to acknowledge Him in
all our ways
and He will direct our paths (see Proverbs 3:6). To acknowledge God simply means to care what He thinks and to ask for His opinion. Proverbs 3:7 says, “Be not wise in your own eyes.” In other words, don’t even think you can run your life and do a good job without God’s help and direction. It takes most of us far too long to learn this important lesson.
The world makes it easy for us to fill our ears with all kinds of things that drown out the voice of God and place Him far in the background of our lives. However, the day comes for every person when only God remains. Everything else in life is currently passing away; and when it does, God will still be here.
Nothing can satisfy our longing for God, except communion and fellowship with Him. Hearing from God is vital to enjoying God’s eternal plan for our lives. Listening to God is our decision; no one else can make it for us. God won’t
force
us to choose His will, but He will do everything He can to
encourage
us to say yes to His ways.
The Most Direct Way
A
n experience my husband and I had reminded me of the way life goes when we think living the way we want is better than following the leading of God’s Holy Spirit. When Dave and I travel, we sometimes hire a guide to show us the best and most important places to see. One time we decided to explore without following a guide. We thought we would have a better experience by doing what we wanted, when we wanted. Instead, we quickly discovered our independent trips were almost a complete waste of time. We spent a large part of the day losing our way and another large part of the day trying to find the way out. The experience of wandering aimlessly trying to find particular places taught us following a guide is a much wiser use of our time.
The Holy Spirit is ready to guide us all day, every day. When we go our own way, thinking a life of doing what we want to do when we want to do it will be good, we lose so much time trying to find our way, we can waste our entire lives. God is committed to guiding us. Learning how to hear and follow Him is very important.
The Bible is full of great promises for our individual walk with God. The Lord will lead us step by step. By faith, we take the step He has shown us, and then He gives us the next one. At times we may stumble and fall down, but He always helps us back up. We continue forward in His strength and His grace, knowing that every time we face a fork in the road God will guide us.
God wants us to care about what He thinks, and quite often if we show we do by seeking Him, He responds by saying, “Do all that is in your heart, I am with you in all that you do.” God is not a dictator; He is our Divine Partner in life. He allows us the freedom of making many choices. When we receive Jesus as Savior, God gives us a new heart and puts His Spirit in us (see Ezekiel 36:26). He writes His law (His will) in our hearts and expects us to follow what we find there. It is important that we do not over-spiritualize hearing from God and make it a difficult thing to do. The longer you walk with God, the easier it is to follow Him.
God is not a dictator; He is our Divine Partner in life. He allows us the freedom of making many choices.
God will guide us in the way to go, but then we have to do the walking. A walk with God takes place through one step of obedience at a time. Some people want the entire blueprint for their lives before making one decision. God does not usually operate that way. He leads us one step at a time.
Looking Ahead
O
ne of the many benefits of hearing from God is the help He gives us to prepare for the future. The Holy Spirit gives us the message the Father gave Him. He declares to us things that will happen in the future.
We see many instances in the Bible when God gave people information about the future. Noah was told to prepare for a flood (see Genesis 6:13–17). When Moses was told to go to Pharaoh and ask for the release of the Israelites, he was also told Pharaoh would not let them go (see Exodus 7). Obviously, God does not tell us everything that will happen in the future, but the Bible says He will tell us of things to come.
There are times when I can sense inside my spirit that something good is going to happen, or at times something challenging. Of course when I sense something challenging is about to happen, I always hope I am wrong and that it is just my imagination, but if I am right, then having the knowledge ahead of time acts as a shock absorber in my life. If an automobile has good shock absorbers on it and hits a hole in the road, it cushions the impact for the passengers and no one gets hurt. God giving us information ahead of time serves the same purpose.
I remember many times like this, but one in particular was when I felt strongly inside my heart that one of my children was really struggling with something major. When I asked, my child told me everything was just fine, but by the Spirit I knew something was wrong. Several days later I received some news that was painful and discouraging, but it would have been a lot more difficult had I not been given a previous warning.
First Corinthians 2:5 teaches us to put our faith not in the wisdom of men (human philosophy) but in the power of God. Verse 11 says no one discerns the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Since the Holy Spirit knows the secret counsels of God, it is vital for us to know how to hear what He wants to say to us. The Holy Spirit will help us realize and comprehend and appreciate the gifts of divine favor and blessings God bestows on us. Human wisdom doesn’t teach us this truth, but it is from the Holy Spirit who gives us the mind of Christ (see vv. 12–13).
The Holy Spirit knows both the mind of God and God’s individual plan for you. His road map for you is not necessarily like anybody else’s, so it doesn’t work to try to pattern your life after what someone else heard from God. God has a unique plan for you, and the Holy Spirit knows what it is and will reveal it to you. You must get comfortable being an individual who is not like everyone else. God likes creativity and He moves in a variety of ways.
When God shows us something that is to take place in the future, He rarely tells us the exact time it will take place. This can be frustrating to us unless we learn to trust God’s timing. The Bible says our times are in His hands. God put a dream in my heart to teach His Word to large numbers of people. I felt very sure I heard from God and began teaching a small Bible study. I spent a lot of time being frustrated because I thought everything would happen right away. I did not know that God’s way is usually to start small and gradually allow growth as we prove we are capable of handling it. I encourage you to enjoy where you are at on the way to where you are going. Enjoy today while you embrace tomorrow by faith. Do not despise the day of small beginnings and always remember God may not show up early, but He will
never
be late.