God wants to talk to you

God wants to talk to you.  (Matthew 1-2 God, speaking, dreams)                           

It is fascinating to see how God has sends us mentors to teach and train us up in matters of the Bible, prayer, and living the Christian life.  Most of mine I have never met—several are deceased now; no matter, I will meet them all one day, of that I am confident¹. 

It was through the writing of John Ortberg², easy to digest and also to teach, then a pastor on staff at Willow Creek Church outside of Chicago, now a Northern California boy, teaching at a Presbyterian church, still writing.  His mentor became my mentor too – the venerable Dallas Willard, professor of philosophy at the University of Southern California.   His treatise on Hearing God – Developing a Conversational Relationship with God was the first to truly and solidly inform my thinking about the matter that God does indeed still speak today.

“In a Dream to the Duke,” the last briefing, I shared about Duke’s dream in which God directed him about an important decision, by imparting scripture verse after scripture verse, one after another.  God did not mumble, did you notice?  I wish all of you could have been on the phone with me when he was recounting the download he’d gotten--the tough OG (old gangster) was giddy.  Note:  God did not divinely reveal those scriptures—as though for the first time; those were verses Duke had memorized some time in his past.  Through a dream, the Lord revisited them to his mind.  Yes, God speaks through dreams, and he used the Words of God to convey his message.

When I teach on hearing God’s voice, the looks on faces are really telling.  Some people just can’t believe that anyone could ‘hear’ from God, and that if folks say they do - they might just be a little strange or hearing voices, which they want to ascribe to God or something else.  After all, we live in a culture that has cultivated the notion that the skeptical person is always smarter than the one who believes.  Ha, you can almost be a cabbage, as long as you doubt.³  Isn’t that the truth?

Once again, as in most things in our lives, it all goes back to what you and I believe about God.  God created us for communion with him; communion or relationship involves communication—two-way communication.  But Friend, that’s just it, don’t you see?  God speaks to those with whom he has relationship.

Therefore, we seek to hear from God because we long for closeness with him; it is a by-product.  Our desire to hear his voice is evidence of our love for him.  One can easily see into the heart of Brother Lawrence, "There is not in the world a kind of life more sweet and delightful than that of a continual conversation with God. Those only can comprehend it who practice and experience it; yet I do not advise you to do from that motive. It is not pleasure which we ought to seek in this exercise; but let us do it from a principle of love, and because God would have us."⁴ 

Communication with my friends and colleagues takes place through voicemail, e-mail, text-message, personal conversations, knowing facial expressions, eye contact, emotions, letter writing, and physical contact like hugs, pats on the back and kisses.  God also uses different forms of communication:  Creation – Paul wrote, “What may be known about God is manifest [made known] in them, They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.”⁴ The psalmist talks further about the heavens declaring God’s glory – that is, speaking to us about the nature of the Creator.⁵

And now, as we study Matthew’s gospel, God has revealed himself through the birth of Jesus Christ.  Is there any louder statement than the giving of his only Son to communicate to mankind?  No indeed not.  Oh, how I love him!  Therefore it is to be expected, given the revelation of God in Christ, that if he wants us to know something, he will be both able and willing to communicate it to us plainly, just as long as we are open and prepared by experience to hear … and obey.

God wants to talk to you …

            Will you be prepared to hear him?  Do you have relationship with him?

                        He will talk to you from the pages of his word as you read~

                        He may speak to you in a dream~

                        He has certainly revealed his great love for you in a very

                                    loud statement named Jesus!

More ways?  Oh yes, my dear friends!  Stay tuned …

_1 – [In my mind’s eye, I can see a few curious faces—hey, tell us who they are!  Jim Cymbala and Lee Strobel lead the pack, followed by Dallas Willard, Anne Graham Lotz, Gordon MacDonald, Josh McDowell, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Mark Batterson.]

_{2 - Ortberg authored The Life You’ve Always Wanted, If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve got to Get out of the Boat, God is Closer than You Think, and my favorite, Love Beyond Reason; he is a pioneer in church leadership today at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church.}

_{3 – Hearing God, Dallas Willard – brilliant!}

_{4 - Brother Lawrence, Practicing the Presence of God}

^{5 – Romans 1.19-20}

^{6 – Psalm 19.1-4}