Does God speak to you?

Commentary By:  Gordon King

I don’t watch much television.  When I do it’s usually house hunters, flipping houses (something like that), or the church channels.

Just yesterday, I happened across a televised religious “town square meeting” which took place somewhere in Texas.  There was one moderator, and six panelists.  They were discussing the question “Does God really talk to people”?  I have posted the video link here:

Does God Really Talk to People?

All of the panelists were leaders of major churches in America.  Including a Lutheran minister, a Seven Day Adventists pastor, a Pentecostal pastor, an Episcopal minister, a Baptist pastor, and a Disciple of Christ pastor.  I was quite fascinated by their responses.

The Lutheran minister did not believe at all that God speaks to believers.  He basically said that people who say that God does are basically liars or just making it up.  He said that he is an agnostic when he hears people say that God talked to them.

The Disciple of Christ pastor said that he believes that some people do hear from God, only about 10%.  However, he said that he has never heard from God himself.

The Episcopal minister said that he did believe God speaks to believers, and that he heard from God one time.  He said that God told him to love your neighbors.

The Baptist pastor also said that God spoke to him one time.  He said that he felt God’s presence while on a trip to Jerusalem.

The Seventh Day Adventist pastor said that God also spoke to him one time.  But it was more like a feeling.  His daughters were in a bad car accident, and God told him that they were kept alive for a purpose.

The Pentecostal pastor said that He also heard from God just one time.  God came to him in a vision after being awoken from sleep.  He said that he saw God, and God told him to preach ecumenism (understanding between different Christian groups).

So that was it.  Six pastors or ministers, each expressing their views and experiences about God speaking to believers.  If you ask me it was not very impressive!  I mean, two of them never heard from God, one of them does not even believe that believers can hear from God, and the rest of them only heard from God one time!  These are leaders of our churches, shouldn’t they be hearing from God a lot more often?!

I don’t know about you or anyone else, but for me, I hear from God all of the time!  He doesn’t speak to me audibly, but He does speak to me in my heart, in my mind, my spirit, and my soul.  He does speak to me through visions and dreams.  He leads me daily and guides me in my decisions and down the right path.  I have had some very strong and emotional encounters with God.  He has definitely let me know that it was Him speaking to me.  He has not only spoken to me, but has filled me with His Holy Spirit several times.  I don’t mean indwelt me with His Spirit, as Christians all of us are indwelt with the Holy Spirit of God.  I mean He literally completely filled me with His Spirit two times, and partially several times!  It was electrifying, spine tingling, loving, warm, and holy.  Words cannot express the feeling.

Does this mean that all believers should have the same experiences that I have?  I don’t know.  I don’t know how many other believers actually experience God the way that I do?  For me it seems normal, not strange or unusual.  Not uncommon or out of the ordinary.  I don’t have dreams and visions all of the time, nor am I filled with the Spirit all of the time, only a few times.  But God does speak to me, and I hear Him daily in one way or another.  Isn’t this how it is supposed to be?  I just assumed that all believers had the same experiences with God that I do.   Maybe they don’t.

I was really shocked to hear these men of God say that they either never had heard from God, or that they only had one experience with God!  What does this say about our churches in America?  These godly leaders don’t seem to have a very personal relationship with the Creator that they preach about.

As Christians we are children of the Most High God.  We are to have a personal relationship with Him.  We are to speak to Him daily, and we are to listen to Him speak to us daily.  This is what being a Christian is all about, a personal relationship with God.  Jesus said that He is not only our Savior, but also our Friend.  Don’t we speak to our friends?  Don’t we listen to our friends?

Being a Christian is not about religious practices, that is religion and not true Christianity.  We should go to church, fellowship with other believers, read the word of God, pray to God, give to the church, and help the needy.  These are all good things and we will be rewarded in heaven for our good works.  However, becoming a true, bible believing, Spirit filled, born-again Christian is having a relationship with our Creator.  We are sons and daughters of God!

So if you go to church, tithe, and do good works, that’s great, however if you only do these things and do not have a personal relationship with God, then you better check your heart.  We are not saved by our works, but by repenting of our sins and accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior!  There is no other way.  Your good works will not save you, going to church will not save you, confessing your sins will not save you, helping the needy will not save you, only by accepting Jesus Christ as your Savior will save you.

I don’t know the men in this video, I don’t know their hearts, only God does.  But it seems to me that if they were walking faithfully with the Lord that they would hear from God much more often.

Are you close to God?  Do you hear from God, do you hear Him speaking to your heart, does He give you visions or dreams, does He lead you on your daily path?

Jesus speaks to me and I listen.  I speak to Him and He hears me.  I know this to be the truth.  I have experienced it and I do experience it.  This is my walk with the Lord.  I ask Him daily to speak to me, to guide me, and to give me the direction that He wants me to take.  This is normal for me, to hear God speak to me is just part of my life.  I desire to hear God more often, for Him to manifest Himself to me, to make Himself known to me on a daily basis.  This is what I seek, where my heart is, in Jesus Christ.

If you are a believer in Jesus Christ and you say that you don’t hear from God, then ask yourself why not?  We often get so busy, so involved in the daily activities of life, that we don’t stop and take time out for our Creator.  We need to take time, in a quiet place, and listen to God.  If we place our faith and trust in Him, then He will speak to us.  Take the time, be quiet and listen for Him and to Him.

God speaks to us in many ways.  Through other people, through the media, through His word, through visions and dreams, in our heart, our mind, our spirit, and our soul.  He can and does manifest Himself to some individuals physically or maybe in a vision, although I have not heard of many physical manifestations happening yet.  He can and does speak to some individuals audibly, though this is not a common occurrence.  He can speak to us through actions and occurrences.  He speaks to us through signs.  He can speak to us through angels.  Angels can manifest themselves to us and speak for God.  There are many ways that God can and does speak to us.  We need to be aware of His presence.

Whatever you experience with God, you should hear Him speaking to you.  He is our Father in heaven, the Spirit of Christ lives within us.  God is real, Jesus is real.  Why shouldn’t a real, true God, Creator of heaven and earth be able to speak to us?!  If He has been alive forever, created all things, holds all things together, can do anything, why can’t He speak to His beloved children?  He is speaking, the question is: “Are you listening”?

God bless my friends, and may the good Lord give you an ear to hear and a heart to see clearly!  Amen